Teknisk Wereld: New Generation
by Celtic Guardian 7
Summary: Fifteen years have passed since Judgment, yet old enemies are reemerging. Why now, and what are they after? A new group of heroes is determined to find out.
1. New Beginning

**Prologue**

It is the year 2122, and Teknisk Wereld is still as popular as ever. It has undergone mass changes, and despite nearly being deleted, it is currently thriving.

In 2100, Hope Gales, Rue Klaus, Max Driger, Will Brown, Brandi Driger, Miles Salum, Draken Drayfall, Fell Luna, Larka Luna, and Zackary Wright collected the three god cards to banish Satan. They were banished from Teknisk Wereld in the process, and each had to wait until reaching the age of twenty before returning.

In 2107, it became clear why this had happened. The creator of Teknisk Wereld, Sarov Yggdrasill, wished to delete it. All but Fell Luna stood against him, for he had left the world with Sarius Tirran. They found the Guardian of Teknisk Wereld, who called herself Angela, and fought alongside her against a group Sarov had hired, the Judges. When the Judges fell, they confronted Sarov, and were victorious. This came at a high price though, for Angela died defending them.

Seven months later, amongst other happy events, Hope finished writing the first book from a series called _Teknisk_ _Wereld_. In all, she wrote six to cover their previous adventures, and said at the end that their adventures were not over.

Thus, it is time to tell another story, one where many paths meet.

**Chapter One: New Beginning**

Max stared out of the window at the stars, his mind in a turmoil. Usually it calmed him to look out at them, but right now, they were not helping.

"Max?"

He did not turn at the voice, knowing who it was. A moment later, she wrapped her arms around him from behind, saying, "Why don't you come back to bed?"

Max shook his head. "I doubt I will get much sleep, Hope. Tomorrow is his thirteenth birthday, after all."

"You worry too much," Hope said lightly. "Nothing will go wrong."

"I hope so," Max said, allowing her to lead him back to their bed. "I hope so."

…

Generally, mornings were expected to be peaceful, quiet times where families would rise and prepare themselves to face a new day. However, there were always exceptions, such as in a certain household in Myrtle Beach.

"Kurtis! Come on Kurtis, wake up!"

The only response from the girl's shouting was a soft groan. Turning over under his covers, the brown-haired boy muttered, "Five more minutes…"

"This happens every time!" the girl said with a frustrated scowl. She was already dressed, with a pink t-shirt, khaki shorts, and brown shoes. Her dark brown hair went to her shoulders, and her brown eyes were narrowed as she glared at the boy.

Her thoughts on how she would give the boy a rude awakening were abruptly put on hold at the sound of a loud knock. She turned and ran for the door at once, knowing already who it would be.

As she did, she passed a woman in her late twenties who was lying on the couch in their living room. Clad in a red bedrobe, her silver-dyed hair went to her shoulders, and her blue eyes opened and fixed on the girl as she ran by.

"Morning Chasity!" she called as she sped to the door.

"Where does she get her energy?" Chasity muttered, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hand.

The girl halted in front of the door and opened it. "Hi Courtney!"

"Good morning, Leigh!" she answered. She had on a gray tank-top, red shorts, and blue athletic sandals with a white stripe over the foot strap. In her hand was a small brown bag. Her blonde hair was tied into a ponytail, leaving her blue eyes unobstructed. "Today's the big day!"

"Yeah, and Kurtis still managed to sleep through it somehow," Leigh said, rolling her eyes.

"That's typical," Courtney said. "But don't worry, I have a great idea for making him jump! See, here's what we'll do…"

After a short conference that was filled with many giggles, the two girls went back towards Kurtis' room, Courtney saying, "Morning Chasity!" as they passed.

"Great, two out of three," Chasity grumbled, now sitting up.

Once they arrived in Kurtis' room, they went next to his bed, Leigh lamenting, "He just won't get up."

Courtney winked at her, saying in a highly fake-sounding voice, "You don't think he's sick, do you?"

"You know, he might have the flu," Leigh replied, winking back.

Grinning, Courtney pulled out a leak from the bag she carried, saying, "I hear a leak enema is a household cure for the flu in some Asian countries. Want to give it a try?"

"Let's!" Leigh answered with a smirk.

Kurtis bolted out of bed at that, his blue eyes pleading for mercy as he said, "I'm up, I'm up, just don't hurt me!"

Courtney spun the leak in hand a few times, saying, "Next time, get up when your sister first asks."

"Yes ma'am!" Kurtis said.

Leigh indicated to his gray pajamas, saying, "Hurry up and get dressed so we can get going."

Eye twitching at the amount of noise the three teenagers were making from the other room, Chasity yelled, "Stop being so loud!" She put a hand to her forehead and sighed, saying, "Kids. I hope I never have any."

Kurtis got his changed into his clothes in record time, which were a green t-shirt, black jeans, and brown shoes. He emerged from his room, saying, "It's finally time!"

"You took too long growing up," Courtney teased. "Made it annoying for the rest of us."

"Hey, it's not _my_ fault you two decided to wait until I was thirteen before signing up," Kurtis pointed out.

"It wouldn't be much fun without having my dear brother along," Leigh said. She looked around the room, saying, "Guess we'll be off once Chasity's ready."

"In other words, now." Chasity stepped into the room, now wearing a black tube-top, light-purple sweatpants, and brown ballet flats. "I have the paperwork, so let's get moving."

As they headed for the door, Chasity called back, "Petra, hold the fort!"

"Yeah, yeah, I know!" they heard Chasity's Soul Monster answer before closing the door.

"I hope my Soul Monster doesn't act like her," Kurtis muttered.

"Just wait until I tell her you said that," Leigh said.

"Please, don't!" Kurtis said, waving his hands frantically. "That's the last thing I need her hearing!"

"You really need to learn to watch what you say," Courtney said with a laugh. "Your mouth's going to get you in trouble one of these days."

"So everyone tells me," Kurtis sighed.

The registration building was not far away. They arrived after a ten minute walk and entered. The room they entered had little worth noting, with white walls, gray tiles, a gray door across the room, and a gray counter. A woman stood behind the counter, wearing a white lab coat.

"That's it? I was hoping for something a bit more… exciting," Kurtis whispered to Leigh and Courtney.

"Well, it's just registration, what did you expect?" Leigh pointed out.

Chasity went straight to the woman with the trio following her. "Hi, we're here to have these three registered."

"Wonderful!" the woman said enthusiastically, and pointed to the door. "Through there, please."

They proceeded through the door, where the room looked almost identical, except a man stood behind the counter. He peered at them, and indicated to Kurtis while saying, "He's signing up?"

"I'm not the only one!" Kurtis said, clearly annoyed to be seen as the youngest at first sight.

"Two of them waited for him to be old enough," Chasity explained, handing him three sets of forms. "Here's the information."

The man scanned the papers briefly before putting them away. "It looks like everything's in order." He reached underneath the counter and began taking out boxes. Three of them were small enough to fit in a hand, and the other three were about the size of a soccer ball. The man gave each of them the two different boxes, saying, "The smaller one is an Envoyant Machine, and the larger is a Duel Disk." He took out a binder and flipped it open, revealing pages that could hold nine cards in the front and nine in the back. Each pocket had a white card, with no picture visible. "And these are Soul Cards. Run your hand over them until you find one that feels right."

"Feels right? What's that supposed to mean?" Kurtis asked.

"Why not try it yourself?" the man suggested.

Kurtis did so, flipping through the pages as he touched each one. He abruptly stopped on one and pulled it out, blinking. "It's warm…"

"Then that's yours. Who's next?" The man offered the binder to Leigh and Courtney.

"I'll go," Leigh answered. She felt the cards until she halted and gingerly removed it. "Here's mine."

"That leaves me." Courtney took a while to find hers, but eventually discovered it. "Okay, done."

"You're all set," the man said, replacing the binder. "Enjoy your time in Teknisk Wereld."

"Thanks, we will!" Leigh said. Kurtis and Courtney nodded in agreement, and the four of them left the building.

The return trip had the teenagers in a higher state of excitement than before, as the items they had received were ones they had heard of many times. Eager to enter the world their family and friends talked of so much, it was no surprise that they made it home far more quickly than when they had set out.

"We're back!" Chasity said when they entered.

"I noticed," Petra answered once they were in the living room. While Chasity had aged noticeably over the past fifteen years, Petra remained the same, as most Soul Monsters did. Her outfit was still a short-sleeved white shirt and a white skirt, leaving most of her tanned skin and her midriff visible. Gold bracelets covered part of her arms, and both of her legs had a matching hoop. Yellow hair fell to her waist, with a white, cloth bonnet and gold circlet keeping it controlled. Her eyes were a fierce purple, which went with the feathers that were attached to the ends of the cloth.

Chasity joined Petra on the couch, leaving the remaining three to sit on the floor. They went to work at opening the boxes, revealing two items. The smaller boxes each contained a black earpiece, and the bigger ones provided a large, white bracelet that covered most of the forearm. By examining them, they were able to discover how to open the Duel Disks and insert their decks into them.

"It's amazing how much technology has improved," Chasity remarked, strapping on her own Duel Disk. "When I first started coming to Teknisk Wereld, the Envoyant Machines were helmets, and the Duel Disks couldn't fold up. These are far more convenient."

"Wow, if you remember those, you really are old!" Kurtis joked.

His words earned him a prompt smack over the head. "I advise you enter before I do more than just that," Chasity growled, lifting her hand threateningly.

"R-right away!" Kurtis said, putting on the earpiece and lying down. The earpiece had a tiny green button on it, which he pressed. His eyes closed, showing that he had entered the virtual world.

"He could have waited for us!" Leigh complained, placing herself next to him and activating her own Envoyant Machine. Courtney promptly did the same.

"Here or there, I'm going to get a headache either way," Chasity said with a sigh.

Petra shrugged. "Surprised you haven't learned it by now, but life sucks."

"Believe me, how I know," Chasity responded. Before she could continue, a voice came from the front.

"We're home!"

"That would be Hope," Chasity muttered. She called back, "You're a few seconds too late! They just left to enter Teknisk Wereld."

The speaker and her husband came in at these words. Hope was currently wearing a white t-shirt, blue jeans, and gray tennis shoes, with her dark-brown shoulder-length hair being kept back in a ponytail by the green and gold clip Max had given her. Her blue eyes gazed at the three lying on the floor, and she smiled. "I'm not surprised. They were anticipating this day for a long time."

"Isn't that the truth," Max said. He wore surprisingly nice clothes, being clad in a long-sleeved gray shirt, black pants, and formal black shoes. Along with his dark brown hair was a visible outline for a beard and a moustache, which he kept shaved at all times. Living with Hope had improved his health to the point of there being no signs of his close encounters with death. Now his brown eyes showed no signs of exhaustion or grimness.

Hope looked around the living room. "Where's Brandi? Did she not come with Courtney?"

Chasity grimaced. "Actually, she's in the hospital."

"What happened?" Max said in alarm.

"She got into an accident a week ago," Chasity said, making a disgusted expression. "I'll let her fill you in on the details. I didn't want to tell you sooner, since you were on vacation and all."

"Thanks," Hope said. "But we'd best go see her."

"Yeah, we'll do that while they enjoy exploring a new world," Max said, smiling slightly. His family had improved his ability to feel and show happiness, making him a more pleasant person to be around… most of the time.

"Would you look after them a little while longer, please?" Hope requested.

"That was what I was planning on," Chasity said.

"Unfortunately," Petra muttered.

Either Hope did not hear her, or she ignored the comment. "Thank you. We'll visit Brandi and be back to prepare for tonight. See you then!"

"Bye." Chasity watched the pair leave, and then attached her own Envoyant Machine. "Guess there's no point in delaying. Let's make sure they haven't gotten mauled by a Flower Wolf or something."

"You almost sound like you care about them," Petra said, smirking.

"In your dreams," Chasity grumbled, hitting the button on her Envoyant Machine.

…

Chasity and Petra found themselves in the forest, a short distance away from the trio. Neither was surprised to see a fourth person there as well, who Chasity greeted as they went over.

"Lance, good to see you," she said.

The boy grinned in response. "Hi Chasity!"

Traits from both his parents were apparent with Lance. He wore a bright red t-shirt with blue jeans, black tennis shoes, and a gold dragon pendant around his neck. His dark silver hair went to his shoulders, and his turquoise eyes shone in exhilaration.

"Why doesn't she ever get mad at you?" Kurtis complained.

"Maybe because I don't irritate her twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week," Lance joked.

"So what do you think of Teknisk Wereld?" Chasity asked.

"It's even more amazing than I thought it'd be!" Leigh said happily. "I know Mom and Dad have talked about how real it is, but there's nothing like actually being in it!"

"Yeah, it's wonderful!" Courtney agreed.

"If this is our reaction to the first location, imagine what we'll be saying when we see the rest of the world," Lance said.

"Should we explore?" Leigh suggested.

"No way! One of the reasons I've been waiting so long to enter Teknisk Wereld is to be able to duel with these!" Kurtis said, tapping his Duel Disk. "So let's do that first!"

Courtney smiled playfully. "All right then, let's duel. Let's see if having holograms will help you in besting your elders."

Kurtis glared at her. "Did you have to mention that?"

"I always do," Courtney said, pressing a button on the Duel Disk. It unfolded, forming a flat playing surface. "Me, then Lance, then Leigh, then you… that's how it is for ages, and nothing you do is going to change it."

"Doesn't mean I can't take you down in a duel!" Kurtis retorted, activating his own Duel Disk.

"What about Soul Monsters?" Leigh asked. "Should we call them out now?"

"I haven't tried mine," Lance said.

"Nah, let's wait on that," Kurtis said. "I want to prove that I can win this without outside help!"

"Your funeral," Courtney responded.

Kurtis: 8000

Courtney: 8000

"I'll let you go first, it being your birthday and all," Courtney said.

"Thanks," Kurtis said. "I lay a monster and end my turn."

"You're not going to get very far like that!" Courtney said. "In fact, I don't even have to mess with your monster. I'll summon Sonic Shooter (1300/600) and use his effect! Since you have no magic or trap cards, he can attack directly!"

While they had seen duels with holograms before, it was different than actually being in one. Kurtis flinched as the Sonic Shooter made contact with him, despite it not hurting.

Kurtis: 6700

Courtney: 8000

"I lay a card down, and that's it," Courtney said.

"You may have gotten the first blow, but this one will be a lot more painful!" Kurtis said. "I summon Magic Freight Car Bokoichi!" (500/500)

Courtney groaned. "I can guess what's coming."

"That's right," Kurtis said, grinning. "I'm going to play Machine Replication Factory! I select one of my Machine Sub-Type monsters with 500 attack or less and special summon up to two more from my deck. I'll choose Bokoichi to get two more! Then I flip over Magic Locomotive Dekoichi! (1400/1000) Normally I'd draw one card, but when I have a Bokoichi on my field, I draw an amount equal to them!" Kurtis drew three cards. "Dekoichi attacks Sonic Shooter!"

"I'll stop you with Itaqua's Gale!" Courtney retorted. "All face-up monsters on your field switch position, so your monsters are now in defense mode!"

"Drat," Kurtis said. "I lay two cards down and end."

"My turn to attack," Courtney said. "I play the field magic card Desert Storm! You should know what that does."

"Raises all Wind Main-Types' attack by 500 and lowers their defense by 400," Kurtis recited as the forest field became a desert area with fierce winds. "In other words, every monster in your deck is affected by it."

"I'll help boost their attack even more by summoning Blade Fly! (600/700) His effect raises Wind Main-Types' attacks by 500 and lowers the attacks of Earth Main-Types by 400," Courtney explained. (2300/200) (1600/300) "Sonic Shooter destroys your Locomotive, and Blade Fly attacks one of your Cars! I lay a card down to finish."

"Your Blade Fly's effect is too annoying to let it stay," Kurtis said as he drew. "I activate Cracking Hatchet on my draw phase!"

"What does that do again?" Courtney asked.

"It's a trap that decreases the targeted monster's attack by 500 for each of my standby phases. (1100/300) That makes him weak enough to fall to my monster, Machine King-Prototype!" (1600/1500) Kurtis declared, summoning it. "Since he's an Earth Main-Type, he loses attack, but his effect means that his attack is increased by 100 for each Machine Main-Type other than him on my field! (1400/1500) Machine King-Prototype attacks Blade Fly!"

"You'll wind up destroying him either way, but I'll activate Spirit Barrier!" Courtney said. "As long as I have a monster on my field, I take no damage in battle."

"As long as your Blade Fly is gone, I don't care," Kurtis said, watching the Machine King-Prototype blow it up. "I'm done."

"This should make you care," Courtney told him. "I sacrifice Sonic Shooter for Monstrous Bird of the Valley of Mists! (2900/1000) He attacks Machine King-Prototype!" (1800/1500)

"Call me a copycat if you want, but I'm activating my own Spirit Barrier!" Kurtis said.

"That's annoying," Courtney said with a frown. "Guess that's all I can do."

"Time to take down your heavy hitter," Kurtis announced. "I play Shrink on Monstrous Bird to cut his base attack in half! (1700/1000) Then I play Early Burial, paying 800 Life Points to bring back Machine King-Prototype! (1800/1500) He attacks your monster!"

Kurtis: 5900

"Hm… I'm going to have to revise my next move," Courtney commented as the Machine King-Prototype destroyed her huge bird. "Done?"

"I am," Kurtis confirmed.

"In that case, I'll summon Newt (2400/0) and attack Nanobreaker!" Courtney said. "Nothing else, though."

Kurtis considered the card he had drawn. "Spirit Barrier has been helping me a lot, but I'm willing to sacrifice it. I play Tempest to destroy all the magic and trap cards on the field! That means both our Spirit Barriers and your Desert Storm is gone! (1900/400) Then I summon Transformable Mechanical Beast Gunner Dragon! (2800/2000) Normally he requires two sacrifices, but I can summon him without any, causing his stats to be cut in half! (1400/1000) That's not enough to take down Newt, so I play an instant magic card, Limiter Removal!"

"Ugh, not that," Courtney groaned. "It doubles all of your Machine Sub-Types' attacks." (2800/1000) (1000/500)

"Yep," Kurtis said. "I switch both my remaining Bokoichis to attack mode. Gunner Dragon attacks Newt, and the Bokoichis attack directly!"

Courtney braced herself, but the charging cars still managed to knock her over on impact.

Kurtis: 5900

Courtney: 5100

"I end my turn, causing my monsters to be destroyed from Limiter Removal," Kurtis stated. His three machines blew up at those words.

"Not bad," Courtney said, rising. "But you left your field open. I summon Stargazing Bird-Laris (800/800) and attack directly!"

The bird's weak attack did little to Kurtis, but what irritated him was how it instantly flew away afterwards, leaving the field.

Kurtis: 5100

Courtney: 5100

"That thing is so annoying!" Kurtis complained. "It's the one that is removed from the game after the damage step, right?"

"Right," Courtney said. "Laris will return at the start of my next battle phase. Anyway, I'm done."

"At least you have nothing to stop this," Kurtis said. "I summon Cyber Phoenix (1200/1600) to attack you directly!"

The robotic bird gave a metallic screech, sending a fire stream at Courtney that scorched her.

Kurtis: 5100

Courtney: 3900

"Do your worst," Kurtis said.

"I think I will!" Courtney replied. "I remove Blade Fly to special summon Spirit of Air: Garuda! (1600/1200) Then I summon Hunter Owl! (1000/900) His attack is increased by 500 for every Wind Main-Type on my field! (2500/900) Stargazing Bird-Laris returns to my field, and Laris attacks Cyber Phoenix!"

"What? He's too weak!" Kurtis protested. Despite that, the smaller Laris shot stars out of its wings, destroying the Cyber Phoenix.

"You forgot that on the damage step, his attack increases by 200 times the level of the monster he attacks," Courtney reminded him. (1600/800) "He is removed, which lowers Hunter Owl's attack, (2000/900) and I'll attack with both of my remaining monsters! That's all for now."

Kurtis: 1100

Courtney: 3900

"I need something good to get out of this…" Kurtis said, drawing. "Yes! I summon Card Gunner! (400/400) I'll activate Machine Replication Factory on him to special summon two more from my deck! Then I play Magic Shard Excavation! By discarding two cards from my hand, I can get back a magic card from my Cemetery, so I'll do that to get Limiter Removal! Now I'll use my Card Gunners' effects! I can discard up to three cards from the top of my deck to power each one up by 500 per card. I discard nine to do that to all of them! (1900/400) Now I use Limiter Removal to double their attacks! (3800/400) They attack for the win!"

The three robots brought up their arms and shot a barrage of rounds, tearing through her monsters and hitting Courtney brutally.

Kurtis: 1100

Courtney: 0

"See? I may be younger, but I can still beat you in a duel!" Kurtis said triumphantly.

Courtney seemed about to respond, but instead cleared her Duel Disk of cards and shuffled her deck, dully saying, "Yeah, you won."

Her companions knew that Courtney could lose confidence easily at times, and this was probably one of those occurrences. Lance took the initiative by saying, "Courtney, how about we duel? It'd give you a chance to show Kurtis that you can win."

"All right," Courtney agreed, brightening at that. "Thanks."

"Not a problem. Just know that I'm not about to go easy on you. Dad always taught me that was disrespectful to the opponent," Lance said, activating his Duel Disk.

"I wouldn't have it any other way!" Courtney replied, sliding her shuffled deck into her Duel Disk.

Courtney: 8000

Lance: 8000

"You can go first if you want," Lance offered.

"I will, thanks," Courtney said. "I lay a monster and a card down."

"Let's see if you have a trap down to stop an attack," Lance said. "I summon Hell Dragon (2000/0) and attack!"

"I actually do have one," Courtney confirmed. "It's Itaqua's Gale, and it'll switch your Hell Dragon to defense mode."

"At least that got it out of the way," Lance said. "I lay two cards down, and my Hell Dragon is destroyed on my end phase since he attacked."

"I knew you would be placing some traps down," Courtney said. "That's why I wanted to keep this monster alive. I flip over Kunoichi Yae! (1100/200) She allows me to discard a Wind Main-Type from my hand to send all of the magic and trap cards on your field to your hand, so I'll discard Death Cyclone to do that! I summon Newt (1900/400) and play Early Burial on Death Cyclone!" (2000/1500)

Courtney: 7200

Lance: 8000

"Death Cyclone? Isn't that the monster that has a really low attack for a level seven?" Kurtis said.

"Yes, but his effect makes up for that," Leigh informed him. "When destroyed in battle, all monsters other than Wind Main-Types on the field are destroyed."

Kurtis whistled. "Not bad at all!"

"My three monsters attack you directly!" Courtney declared. A furious onslaught of blows followed that, nearly sending Lance flying. He managed to keep his footing, even though the assault took more than half his Life Points away.

Courtney: 7200

Lance: 3000

"Good one," Lance said, drawing. "If you got another shot like that at me, there's no way I'd survive. Fortunately, I can destroy your monsters now. I summon Lord of Dragons-Dragon Ruler (1200/1100) and play Dragon Calling Horn! It allows me to special summon two Dragon Sub-Types when I have a Lord of Dragons on the field, so I bring out Sapphire Dragon (1900/1600) and Tyrant Dragon!" (2900/2500)

"Tyrant Dragon!" Leigh said, gazing at the huge red and black dragon in awe. "It's been a while since Lance got him out."

"But I'm glad I did," Lance said. "Not only because he looks awesome in 3-D either. Tyrant Dragon can attack twice if the opponent has a monster out, which means he'll do a lot of damage before Death Cyclone takes him out. I attack Newt with Sapphire Dragon, killing them both! Then Tyrant Dragon attacks Yae, and Death Cyclone after that!"

The fire-breath attack the Tyrant Dragon used was certainly impressive, although some of its glory was stolen by the Death Cyclone sucking him and the Lord of Dragons into a vortex upon its death, leaving Lance's field empty.

Courtney: 4500

Lance: 3000

"I'll put my two cards back down and end my turn," Lance concluded.

"Guess I'm going to have to deal with them this time," Courtney said. "I summon Eagle Eye (1300/1200) and attack you directly!"

"Sorry, that one's not going through!" Lance countered. "I activate Cry of the Living Dead to special summon Sapphire Dragon!"

"All right, I call off the attack," Courtney said. "I lay a card down to finish."

"I don't like the looks of that card you have down, so I'll summon Mirage Dragon!" (1600/600) Lance said.

Courtney flipped over her card. "I activate Tidal Wave to destroy all monsters on the field."  
Rather than reacting with frustration or anger, Lance laughed. "Dang, I walked into that one! Your turn."

"You did," Courtney agreed, grinning. "I summon Sonic Shooter (1300/600) and attack directly!"

The attack itself was not very strong, but in his weakened state, it had a surprising impact.

Courtney: 4500

Lance: 1700

"Your move," Courtney said.

"Okay. I summon Dol Dora (1500/1200) and attack!" Lance said.

Two swift bites tore apart the Sonic Shooter, leaving Courtney's field bare.

Courtney: 4300

Lance: 1700

Lance showed her his empty hand. "Nothing else I can do."

"I lay a monster down, and that's it," Courtney said.

"At least this trap will finally see some use," Lance commented. "I activate Dragon Rage! When my Dragon Sub-Types attack defense monsters, they still deal damage. Dol Dora attacks yours!"

"That was Blade Fly," Courtney said. (600/700)

Courtney: 3500

Lance: 1700

"That turned out better than I hoped. You're up," Lance said.

Courtney looked at the two cards she held thoughtfully. "This should work. I remove Blade Fly to bring out Spirit of Air: Garuda! (1600/1200) Then I summon Tornado Bird! (1100/1100) Garuda attacks Dol Dora, and Tornado Bird attacks directly!"

Courtney: 3500

Lance: 500

The two attacks left Lance at dangerously-low Life Points. He glanced at his counter and said, "I'm just lucky you didn't have a stronger monster!"

"You've got that right," Courtney replied playfully. "Your turn."

"On your end phase, Dol Dora returns to my field with reduced stats," Lance said. (1000/1000) "I summon Spear Dragon (1900/0) and attack Garuda! That's all for me."

Courtney: 3200

Lance: 500

"Your Spear Dragon is too dangerous to leave alone," Courtney stated. "I summon Stargazer Bird-Laris (800/800) and attack Spear Dragon! (1600/800) He is removed, and Tornado Bird attacks Dol Dora. I'm done."

Lance considered his options, and then said, "I have no choice but to pass."

"Then it's over," Courtney said. "I summon Hunter Owl, (1000/900) who is powered up by his own Main-Type and Tornado Bird's. (2000/900) I enter the battle phase, causing Laris to return. (2500/900) Hunter Owl delivers the final blow!"

The owl descended on Lance with a screech, talons ripping away his remaining Life Points.

Courtney: 3200

Lance: 0

"Ouch! Looks like you nailed me," Lance said, smiling sheepishly as he cleared his Duel Disk.

"O rly?" Kurtis said.

"Ya rly," Lance replied.

"No wai!" Leigh and Courtney finished.

"I hate kids," Chasity grumbled to Petra, who nodded in agreement.

"So what now?" Courtney asked.

"You three got to duel, so now I want a turn!" Leigh said. "How about it, Lance? Let's see if you can restore your honor by beating me!"

"I'm up for that," Lance said. "Ready?"

"Always!" Leigh answered, activating her Duel Disk.

Lance: 8000

Leigh: 8000

"Since you lost, I'll let you go first," Leigh said.

"Sure thing. I summon Sapphire Dragon (1900/1600) and lay a card down," Lance said.

"Not much I can do now," Leigh confessed. "I lay a monster in defense and a card."

"That card worries me, so I'll play Stomping Crash!" Lance said. "I can only use it with a Dragon Sub-Type on my field, and it lets me destroy a magic or trap card to deal 500 damage to the owner. I'll hit yours."

Lance: 8000

Leigh: 7500

"You destroyed my Holy Barrier-Mirror Force," Leigh said regretfully.

"Whew, glad that's gone," Lance remarked. "I summon Dol Dora (1500/1200) and attack your monster with Sapphire Dragon!"

Leigh smiled at the sound of the Sapphire Dragon thudding against her monster. "You've run into Skull Dog Maron." (1350/2000)

Lance: 7900

Leigh: 7500

"Ah well. Guess that's all," Lance said.

"Time to counter attack," Leigh said. "I switch Skull Dog Maron to attack mode and summon Milus Radiant! (300/250) He increases all Earth Main-Types' attacks by 500, and lowers Wind Main-Types by 400." (1850/2000) (800/250) (1500/1600) (1100/1200)

"I can guess what you're about to do, and I'm not letting it happen!" Lance said. "I activate Menacing Roar so that you can't declare an attack this turn."

"That ruins that idea," Leigh said, frowning. "Your turn."

"No magic or trap cards on your field? That means I can go all out!" Lance announced. "I summon Divine Dragon Ragnarok (1500/1000) and attack Milus Radiant with him! Now that he's gone, our monsters return to their original stats. Dol Dora attacks Skull Dog Maron, and Sapphire Dragon attacks directly!"

Lance: 7900

Leigh: 4750

Leigh recovered swiftly from the slashes the Sapphire Dragon had inflicted. "Done?"

"For now," Lance answered.

"In that case, there's only one thing to do. I summon Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000) and attack Ragnarok!" Leigh declared.

The gorilla's furious bombardment of punches easily destroyed the dragon, causing Lance to wince at the damage it had done.

Lance: 7400

Leigh: 4750

"I can't do much about him at the moment," Lance said. "So I switch my two monsters to defense mode and set another."

"I'm glad you did, or this wouldn't work," Leigh stated. "I sacrifice Berserk Gorilla for Twin-Headed Beast! (1700/1900) He can attack twice per battle phase, so I'll have him attack Sapphire Dragon and Dol Dora! I end my turn after that."

"On your end phase, Dol Dora returns to my field in a weakened state," Lance reminded her. (1000/1000) "I sacrifice Dol Dora and my face-down Lord of Dragons-Dragon Ruler for Tyrant Dragon!" (2900/2500)

"Twice in a row," Leigh said.

"Yeah, I'm surprised I managed to pull it off," Lance said. "Tyrant Dragon attacks your Beast!"

"I'll save him by activating Emissary of Harmony!" Leigh retorted. "None of my monsters can be destroyed, and I can't take damage."

"Not much else I can do this turn then," Lance said.

Leigh brightened at the card she drew. "This'll take down your Tyrant Dragon! I play Wild Burst on Twin-Headed Beast, to increase his attack by his defense! (3600/1900) Then I summon Neospacian Black Panther!" (1000/500)

The sight of the black panther with a cape emerging on Leigh's field caused Kurtis to burst out in laughter. Leigh gave him an annoyed look, saying, "What's so funny?"

"THAT!" Kurtis answered, gasping for breath. "I've never seen that card… and it's so… STUPID LOOKING!"

"You've never seen it because it's new in my deck. Just wait until we're done with this duel and I'll waste you with it," Leigh swore. "Twin-Headed Beast attacks Tyrant Dragon, and then directly. My Panther attacks too!"

Lance: 2100

Leigh: 4750

"Thanks a lot, Kurtis," Lance said jokingly. "Now she's taking out her rage on me."

"Don't worry, she'll turn her attention away soon enough," Kurtis promised.

"My Twin-Headed Beast is destroyed at the end of my turn due to Wild Burst," Leigh said, watching it vanish. "Go ahead."

"I'll end this so you can talk things out with your brother," Lance said. "I summon Mirage Dragon (1600/600) and play Early Burial on Tyrant Dragon! He can't be special summoned from the Cemetery unless I sacrifice a Dragon Sub-Type from my field, so I'll sacrifice Mirage Dragon. Tyrant Dragon attacks your Panther, and then he attacks directly to end the duel!"

Leigh covered her head with her arms as the flames came pouring down on her. When she lowered them, she saw that her Life Point counter had hit zero.

Lance: 1300

Leigh: 0

"Good duel," Leigh said. "Now if you will excuse me…"

"Gladly," Lance said, stepping to the sidelines. "You're up, Kurtis."

"I didn't know you were going to take this so personally," Kurtis said, going over to face her.

"For your information, I _like_ my Panther," Leigh said icily. "Ready to lose?"

"No, but that's okay, seeing as I won't!" Kurtis declared.

"Just because it's your birthday doesn't mean I won't destroy you," Leigh told him, drawing.

"She has a point," Courtney said. "Lance and I each won and lost a duel. Kurtis, you have to lose so that the pattern won't be broken."

"I'm not going to let that get in the way of a victory!" Kurtis said, drawing a hand as well.

Leigh: 8000

Kurtis: 8000

"You went first in your last duel, and I didn't, so I'll go first this time," Leigh said. "I lay a monster in defense mode and end my turn."

"Wow, for wanting to kill me, you sure didn't do much," Kurtis commented. "But I know you well, and I bet I know what monster that is. I summon Magic Freight Car Bokoichi (500/500) and attack it!"

"You guessed correctly," Leigh said. "It was my Quick Squirrel. (1000/100) I gain 1000 Life Points and special summon two more in face-down defense mode from my deck."

Leigh: 9000

Kurtis: 8000

"That's really annoying," Kurtis complained. "I'll lay two cards down to finish."

"I hope you have something to stop this," Leigh said. "Or else you're really going to be hurting when I'm done. I summon Dark Zebra (1800/400) and switch my Quick Squirrels to attack mode. Dark Zebra attacks Bokoichi!"

"Luckily, I do have something to stop it," Kurtis said. "I activate Gravity Release, switching the modes of all our monsters."

"So they're all in defense," Leigh said. "Ugh. I lay a card down, and that's it."

"I switch Bokoichi to attack mode and play Machine Replication Factory!" Kurtis said. "That'll allow me to special summon two more from my deck. They destroy your monsters!"

The cars ran over Leigh's monsters, flattening her zebra and two squirrels. It was quite an amusing sight for the spectators.

Leigh: 11000

Kurtis: 8000

Kurtis took the chance to say, "Lance! What does the scouter say about his power level?"

"It's over NINE THOUSAAAND!" Lance replied.

"What! Nine thousand?" Kurtis exclaimed.

"Are you done?" Leigh said, clearly irritated.

Kurtis knew better than to push his luck. "Yep."

"About time. I play Angel's Gift, to draw three cards and discard two," Leigh said. "I discard Milus Radiant and Twin-Headed Beast. Then I activate Cry of the Living Dead to special summon Beast from the Cemetery! (1700/1900) I summon Mad Dog of Darkness (1900/1400) and attack all three of your Bokoichis!"

To say the least, it was a mass slaughter of train cars. Not a scrap of metal remained when her monsters were done with them.

Leigh: 11000

Kurtis: 4200

"Ow, I should have been more careful," Kurtis said with a wince.

"Yeah, you should have," Leigh agreed. "Your turn."

"Good thing I can clear out those monsters," Kurtis said. "I play Lightning Vortex, discarding Transformable Mechanical Beast Gunner Dragon to destroy all the face-up monsters on your field! I'll summon Cyber Phoenix (1200/1600) and attack directly!"

The flames barely burned Leigh, with her Life Points being as high as they were. She was still annoyed by the damage done though.

Leigh: 9800

Kurtis: 4200

"My turn?" Leigh asked.

"It is," Kurtis confirmed.

"I'll summon Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000) and attack Cyber Phoenix!" Leigh said.

Leigh: 9800

Kurtis: 3400

"At least something good came out of that," Kurtis said. "When Cyber Phoenix is face-up and destroyed in battle, I draw a card."

"I'm well aware," Leigh said sourly. "Go."

"On my draw phase, I activate Cracking Hatchet on Berserk Gorilla!" Kurtis said. "His attack lowers by 500 on my standby phase. (1500/1000) I summon Nanobreaker (1600/1800) and attack him with her!"

One swift slice cut through the gorilla, leaving the Nanobreaker as the only monster on the field.

Leigh: 9700

Kurtis: 3400

"I lay a card down and end my turn," Kurtis concluded.

"Your Nanobreaker is too strong for my monsters at the moment," Leigh said. "I'll play Hammer Shoot to destroy her, since she's the monster on the field with the highest attack. After that, I summon Guard Dog!" (1500/500)

"I activate Tidal Wave to destroy him," Kurtis countered.

"There's nothing else I can do," Leigh said.

"I lay one monster. Your turn," Kurtis ended.

"As much as I hate to, I'm going to copy you by laying a monster in defense," Leigh said.

"Hope you're not about to copy this move," Kurtis said. "I reverse summon Magic Locomotive Dekoichi (1400/1000) to draw a card, and lay that card down to end my turn."

"I won't be doing that, but this move will be a lot worse," Leigh warned. "I'll flip over my Skull Dog Maron (1350/2000) and play Wild Burst on him! (3350/2000) He attacks Dekoichi! I'm done after that."

The skeletal creature tore through the Dekoichi, with several ear-shattering screeches resulting from the claws and teeth meeting metal. The Maron blew up immediately afterwards.

Leigh: 9700

Kurtis: 1450

"This sucks," Kurtis said, staring at his Life Point counter. "I guess my only choice is to go suicidal. I activate Cry of the Living Dead for Gunner Dragon (2800/2000) and play Limiter Removal! (5600/2000) He attacks directly!"

Of all the attacks that had occurred that day, this one was clearly the most devastating. Leigh went flying back from the force of it, barely managing to land on her feet.

Leigh: 4100

Kurtis: 1450

"I lay a card down and end, causing my Gunner Dragon to explode," Kurtis said. "Now it's all up to luck."

Leigh looked at her new card and smiled. "And luck is on my side today. I play Cyclone, destroying your magic or trap card!"

"Dang! That was my Gravity Release," Kurtis groaned.

"That means you're finished!" Leigh said. "I summon Neospacian Black Panther (1000/500) and play Wild Burst! (1500/500) He attacks you directly!"

Much to Kurtis' humiliation, the monster he had been earlier ridiculing was now his executioner. It swiped him angrily before vanishing, since the duel was over.

Leigh: 4100

Kurtis: 0

Lance laughed at the expression on Kurtis' face. "That must have been a blow to your pride!"

"Aw shut up," Kurtis grumbled, sliding his deck away.

Courtney clapped her hands together, saying, "That completed the pattern! We each won one and lost one!"

"They're certainly more even in strength when it comes to dueling," Chasity remarked to Petra. "Unlike some other people I know."

"Rue," Petra said, snickering.

"Exactly." Chasity raised her voice, saying, "Okay, that's enough of that. We've spent most of the day doing this, so we should return to the real world."

"What? But we didn't even get to explore!" Kurtis protested.

"We'll have time for that tomorrow. It's nearly time for dinner," Chasity pointed out.

"Yeah, and we're celebrating your birthday tonight," Leigh added, apparently satisfied that she had gotten her revenge in the previous duel. "You don't want to miss that, right?"

"Of course not!" Kurtis responded. "Okay, let's go back, but we should come here tomorrow."

"Definitely," Lance agreed. "I'm sure Mom and Dad are going to want to drive me over to your house soon, so I'll see you then."

"Bye," Courtney answered before Lance vanished.

"Let's follow his lead," Leigh said, logging out. The others did the same.

To be continued…


	2. Coming of Age

I am not sure why this chapter was hard to write, but it was. Ah well, it's done now!

**Chapter Two: Coming of Age**

The first words Max and Hope heard when entering the hospital were, "Max, Hope! Did you have a good trip?"

"Hi Lilian," Hope replied. "Yes, it was a wonderful break."

Now forty-two years old, Lilian still worked as a nurse at their local hospital. She had on a white shirt, blue knee-length skirt, and white shoes that day. Her red hair was done back in a bun, leaving her green eyes easily visible.

"Where is Brandi?" Max asked.

"I'll bring you to her," Lilian said.

They followed Lilian to one of the hospital rooms, where Brandi sat on the edge of her bed. She wore a yellow long-sleeved shirt, a knee-length blue jean skirt, and black sandals with high heels. Her blonde hair fell just above her shoulders, and her blue eyes reflected her boredom as she stared at a wall.

"Brandi, you have visitors," Lilian said.

Brandi turned and smiled at the sight of them. "Hey, it's about time! How did it go?"

"We had fun," Hope said. "It looks like you can't say the same though."

"No kidding," Brandi said, giving her right leg an exasperated look. There were bandages around the knee area.

"What happened?" Max asked.

"Well, I had just finished with a gymnastics lesson," Brandi began, as both of the new listeners were aware of her teaching career. "As usual, Courtney had attended, and we were leaving together to go home when I saw one of my students sitting outside. She looked depressed, so I asked what was wrong, and she said that she couldn't walk on the balance beam very well. I had noticed that earlier, so I decided to give her a few pointers, and stood on a nearby railing to show what I meant." She scowled as she continued, "Some idiot skaters came by and thought it would be cute to shove me off. I landed on the cement and found that I couldn't stand up. Mana went after them while Courtney called an ambulance. Once I got here, Lilian told me my knee cap was shattered, and that I would need surgery for it."

"That's awful!" Hope said. "Um… sorry if I'm missing something obvious here, but why didn't Mana heal you?"

"She tried," Brandi answered. "But for some reason, she found that she cannot heal bone damage anymore. Please don't mention it around her though. She feels like she's failed me by being unable to help."

"All right, we'll stay silent," Hope agreed.

"What happened to the punks that did that to you?" Max growled, eyes flashing.

"They got caught and are spending a month in juvenile penitentiary," Brandi said in grim satisfaction. "Then they have one hundred hours of community service to do. Dad took the case himself."

Max snickered. "I'm sorry I missed that."

"When did this happen?" Hope asked.

"A week ago. The surgery is already done, and now I'm healing and in rehab," Brandi said. "It's dull beyond belief, but Lilian won't let me leave."

"Because I know she would be walking around without crutches if I let her," Lilian threw in.

"She's right," Max said, grinning. "Better stay where you are."

"Thanks for the support," Brandi grumbled. Then she said, "What did they think of Teknisk Wereld?"

"They were in it when we arrived," Hope said.

"Ah." Brandi looked out the window. "It's getting late. I guess you've got to get back home soon."

"Yeah. We need to prepare for dinner and such," Hope confirmed.

"Be sure to wish him happy birthday for me," Brandi said. "And that I'm sorry I couldn't come."

"We will," Max assured. "You just take it easy."

Brandi rolled her eyes. "I will, I will."

"Have fun tonight," Lilian said.

"Thanks. See you both later," Hope said. Max nodded to them, and they left.

…

"Ow," Kurtis groaned, sitting up and removing his Envoyant Machine and Duel Disk. "I feel like I've been laying there for ages!"

"You'll get used to it after the first few times," Chasity said, rising.

They heard the front door open, and then Hope and Max entered the room. Leigh instantly leapt up and ran over to hug them. "Mom, Dad!"

Max returned it, as did Hope, who said, "How have you been?"

"Great!" Leigh said, letting go.

Kurtis was a bit on the shy side when it came to hugs, but he let Hope embrace him anyway, saying, "Hi Mom, Dad."

"Thank everything the two of you are here," Chasity said in relief. "They're all yours."

"They kept you as busy as always?" Max assumed.

"Did they ever," Chasity said, putting a hand to her forehead. "And I suppose you'll be wanting me to take them to Teknisk Wereld while you're busy working."

"It would really help us," Hope answered.

Chasity sighed. "Didn't really expect to get out of that one."

"Welcome back Aunt Hope, Uncle Max," Courtney said.

"Hello Courtney," Hope replied. "So, did you all enjoy Teknisk Wereld?"

"Did we ever!" Kurtis said enthusiastically. "I can't wait to go back!"

"Thought you might say that," Max said, amused. "What about you, Leigh and Courtney?"

"It was amazing from what we saw so far," Leigh said.

"I like it too, and am looking forward to seeing more tomorrow," Courtney added.

"That's great to hear," Max said. "Did any of you bring out your Soul Monsters?"

The trio glanced at each other sheepishly before Leigh said, "No."

"I'm sure you'll have time to tomorrow." Hope brought out her Soul Card. "Speaking of which…"

Gaston appeared from it, remarking, "Two weeks is a long time to be in there."

"Sorry," Hope apologized. "Thanks for being patient."

"Not a problem. At least my size isn't an issue, unlike Tenma's." Gaston directed to Kurtis, "If I'm correct with what day it is, allow me to wish you a happy birthday."

"Thanks," Kurtis said. He and Leigh were used to speaking with Gaston, and on a lesser note, Tenma. They held positions in the family as well, despite not being human.

"I had best start preparing everything," Hope said, heading towards the kitchen. "Be sure to answer the door if anyone arrives early."

"I have a few last-minute preparations to make, which I will take care of now," Max said. "Did Lance leave recently?"

"Yeah, so he should be here in about two hours," Courtney answered.

"I'll be ready around then." Max went to his room, leaving the three teenagers to entertain themselves, along with Chasity to watch over them, much to her distaste.

Gaston had also remained, staying by a wall with an expression that suggested he was in deep thought. While Kurtis and Courtney discussed their decks and possible changes for them, he noticed Leigh was sitting a short distance away, staring at her Soul Card.

"Something wrong?" Gaston asked, kneeling next to her.

Leigh showed him the Soul Card. "I was just wondering what my Soul Monster was. It's one of the things I have been looking most forward to, and I didn't even get to see who I have. But I'm nervous too. What if I don't get a friendly Soul Monster? I mean, there are ones like you, and then you have… Tenma. There's nothing wrong with that, it's just that I don't want my Soul Monster to be like him, or some of the others I've seen."

"I can understand your concern, but you don't need to worry," Gaston assured. "Soul Monsters reflect from their companion's soul. With yours, I'm sure you'll have a nice one."

"I hope so," Leigh replied. "Guess I'll see tomorrow."

"Actually, you might not," Gaston said.

Leigh blinked. "Why?"

"Most of the time, Soul Monsters only appear when their companion is in danger," Gaston explained. "In my case, Hope first summoned me when she was threatened by a Hercules Beetle. Some Soul Monsters may not appear that way, but the majority of them do."

"Oh," Leigh said, sounding disappointed.

"There are plenty of wild monsters in Teknisk Wereld," Gaston said. "If he or she does not appear at first, I am sure something will happen to prompt it. When you go back there tomorrow with your friends, all of you should try to summon them. For the ones that don't come, wait until the time is right."

Leigh nodded, looking more at ease. "Okay, thanks."

"Happy to help." Gaston got up and glanced at Kurtis and Courtney, remarking, "You should join in on their conversation. I believe Kurtis is saying your deck could use some changes too, like taking out a certain Panther card."

"He's asking for it!" Leigh growled, marching over to them and berating Kurtis for making comments behind her back about her deck.

…

Accurate to Courtney's prediction, two hours passed before there was a knock on the door. Leigh opened it to find three people standing outside, who she invited in at once. "Lance, Draken, Kisara, welcome!"

"It's been a while," Draken remarked, stepping inside.

Although Leigh had no way of knowing herself, her mother had often told her that Draken's clothing choices reminded her of Rue's in one aspect; no matter how many years passed, they would hardly ever change. His white shirt, silver jacket, blue pants, and white casual shoes kept to his constant color scheme, and he continued to wear his silver dragon pendant. His silver, shoulder-length hair was no longer kept in a ponytail though, as he allowed it to hang free. A few bangs hung in his blue eyes, but not enough to obscure them.

"Hello," Kisara said softly, following suit.

Kisara, on the other hand, had not restricted herself as much. She wore an emerald-green dress, which matched her eyes, and hard black shoes. Her black hair still fell to her waist, and her words remained quiet. Years of living with Draken and Lance had resulted in her voice being higher than before, but it remained below average of most people's.

"So where is everyone?" Lance asked.

"In the living room," Leigh said, leading them to it.

Max had returned to it by then, as had Hope when she heard the knocking. After all of them exchanged greetings, Draken brought out his Soul Card to call forth Darche. Seeing this, Courtney asked, "Where is Kazel?"

"Here," Kazel replied, poking her head through the window. "Kisara released me outside to avoid overcrowding your home."

"Looks like we got here before everyone else," Lance commented.

"You did," Chasity replied. "We're expecting four more people to show up, not counting Soul Monsters."

As if to prove her words, a knock sounded from the front, along with excited barking. Hope went to the door, calling back, "You can guess who these ones are."

When she returned, it was with two people and a dog that jumped up to lick anyone he could lay his paws on. Most were occupied by him, but Courtney ran to one of the arrivals and hugged her. "Aunt Larka!"

Larka embraced her as well, laughing at the enthusiastic greeting. Due to not aging, her physical appearance had not changed at all, leaving her slim form, pale skin, lengthy silver hair, and yellow eyes the same. Contrasting that, her clothing was completely different, thanks to Brandi forcing her to attend shopping trips at the mall. She wore a purple short-sleeved shirt, black skirt, and black shoes for the occasion.

Kurtis went to meet the other arrival, saying, "Uncle Zack!"

"Hello, Kurtis," he replied, smiling. Like Larka, he physically looked the same, from his mechanical parts to his blonde hair and blue eyes. He too had changed outfits though and was now wearing a deep blue long-sleeved shirt and black pants.

Since Zack and Larka lived nearby, they frequently visited the Driger families. The pain Larka had felt from Angela's death had been greatly eased by Courtney's birth, so she was especially close with her. This had prompted Brandi to appoint her as Courtney's godmother, something Larka had accepted gladly. While nothing as specific as that explained the other connection, Kurtis had grown up idolizing Zack to the point of running the same deck type that he did.

Larka released her grip, saying, "I'm glad we weren't late… Malon, down!" She snatched up her Soul Monster, who whined pitifully at his fun being ruined.

"Are we waiting for anyone else?" Zack inquired.

Another knock sounded. "Not anymore," Hope answered, walking by him to get the door. She came back shortly with two more people and a Soul Monster.

"Hi Grandma, Grandpa!" Leigh said. Kurtis and Courtney echoed her words.

"Hey kids," Randall replied. He was clad in a dark blue shirt, khaki shorts, and gray sandals. His white hair, as usual, tilted slightly to his left, and his brown eyes had a hint of tiredness in them.

"It feels like it's been so much longer than six months since we saw you!" Abby said. She wore a violet shirt, sky-blue shorts, and brown sandals. Her blonde hair was cut short, and her blue eyes had settled on her grandchildren fondly.

"Yeah, Christmas was the last time you visited," Max recalled.

"Nice to see you too, Hime," Hope said to Abby's Soul Monster. She hesitated but asked, "Where is GaBa?"

"In his Soul Card," Randall assured. "We did not want to risk him being out."

"Whew," Hope said, clearly relieved. "Anyway, now that we are all here, how about dinner? It should be ready in a few minutes…"

She trailed off at the sound of yet another knock. Surprise written on her face, Hope went towards the front once more, saying, "I thought nobody else was planning on coming?"

The person she returned with a moment later shocked them. Chasity was the first to react, going forward and embracing him. "Ender!"

"Long time no see," Ender answered. He wore a red shirt, black pants, and black shoes. His brown hair was cut short, clearing his green eyes. The largest difference from fifteen years ago, however, was that he no longer used a wheelchair. He now stood upright, as if he had never been crippled.

"I missed you," Chasity said, giving him a genuine smile, something she rarely did.

"Same here." Ender nodded to everyone else, saying, "I'm sorry if this is abrupt, but I thought that I would drop in since I was nearby."

"It isn't a problem at all," Max replied. "We're glad you could make it."

"I'm sure we have enough room for an extra place at the table," Hope said. "Let me get things prepared…" She went to do so while everyone else headed to the table.

To accommodate for the variety of preferences food-wise, Hope had made several different plates, which were approved of. Despite her inability to make food when younger, cooking for her family had helped improve her skills. Once they had eaten, and had a fair share of the chocolate cake Hope had prepared, they came to the most anticipated part for Kurtis: opening presents.

"So, who first?" Larka asked.

"Mine," Max said. "I have a good reason for it."

He handed Kurtis a white box, who curiously opened it. He stared at the object inside, saying, "Your vest? I thought I wouldn't get that for a while yet!"

"I felt now was the right time," Max stated. "You're now the possessor of a family heirloom."

"Just like my locket," Courtney said. "Mom gave me that when I was thirteen too."

"Thanks, Dad!" Kurtis said, putting it on.

Hope took the moment to walk over to Leigh. "While it is not your birthday, I have something to give you as well." She produced another white box, this one far smaller. Leigh eyed it with interest before lifting the lid.

"But Mom, this is…!" Leigh held up the black and white orb, unable to finish.

"I think it should be passed on to you," Hope said. "It has protected me in the past, and I am hoping it will do the same for you."

"Thank you," Leigh said, solemnly putting it on.

"Well, as for the next gift, how about ours?" Courtney suggested.

Leigh nodded to that and handed Kurtis a small, wrapped box. "We pitched in to get you this. So it's from both Courtney and me."

Kurtis unwrapped it swiftly and looked inside the box. He grinned at the sight of what was there. "A Perfect Machine King! I've been needing one of him for ages!"

"Notice what version it is?" Leigh asked.

"Ultimate Rare!" Kurtis replied happily. "Thanks a lot."

"Glad you like it," Courtney said.

"Our turn!" Lance said, putting a gift in front of Kurtis. "This is from Mom, Dad, and me."

Kurtis opened it, blinking at the contents. "A DVD box set for… Rozen Maiden? What's that?"

"An awesome anime series," Lance told him. "Trust me, you'll love it."

"But it looks like it's about dolls," Kurtis said. "Dolls!"

"That was my first reaction too, but boy did it prove me wrong!" Lance said. "Give it a try."

"Okay, thanks," Kurtis said, not appearing convinced but being polite.

"I guess mine is next," Hope said, handing him another present, which he took the wrapping paper off of at once.

"Wow, Mom! I didn't expect you to get me this!" Kurtis said, gazing at the box with the label '1/60 Scale Model of Wing Zero Custom'.

"I have enough knowledge of action figures and models to find what you want," Hope answered.

"Us now?" Larka asked Zack, who nodded and gave Kurtis their gift.

Kurtis opened it, and looked up in surprise. "You knew I wanted a digital camera?"

"Based on what you were doing on your computer, I inferred it," Zack answered. "It's from both of us."

"That'll be really helpful, thanks!" Kurtis said, placing it by the growing pile of presents.

"And we're up," Randall said, placing the final visible box in front of him.

Once Kurtis saw what it was, he nearly leapt out of his chair. "Grandpa!"

"What? We know you're into computers," Randall said, smiling at his reaction.

"Still, a lap top…" Max shook his head. "You really do spoil them."

"Isn't that our job?" Abby asked innocently.

"So that just leaves Uncle Ender," Leigh said. "Did you get him something?"

Ender smiled mysteriously. "I did, but he won't find out what just yet."

"Aw, why not?" Kurtis asked.

"You'll understand when you see it," Ender replied. "Be patient until then."

"All right," Kurtis agreed. "These will definitely keep me happy. Thanks again, everyone!"

"Looks like that wraps things up!" Draken said, grinning at the pun he had made.

"I'm telling Rue about that one," Hope informed him. "Yes though, if you are going home, it would be best to leave now."

"We do have to get to work early tomorrow," Draken agreed. "But we were thinking that if it was all right with you guys, Lance could stay here for a few nights. It is summer vacation for him, after all."

"That would be great!" Leigh said. "Come on, Mom, Dad, say yes!"

Max gave in to her pleading look. "I don't see why not."

"That settles it then," Draken said.

"Be sure to be polite and courteous," Kisara said to Lance. "You can call us if you need anything, so don't hesitate if you need to."

"Yeah, Mom, I know," Lance said, scratching the side of his head sheepishly. He got embarrassed whenever Kisara went into a worrying mode, but he secretly appreciated the concern.

"I think it's about time we go too," Randall said, with Abby nodding.

"Same here. Don't want to intrude any longer," Ender concurred, rising from his chair.

"Us as well," Zack said while Larka picked up Malon from where he had been lying.

"Thank you all for coming," Hope said.

"Yeah, thanks! It was great to have everyone here," Kurtis added.

"Glad we could make your birthday a good one," Abby said. "Take care."

They exchanged a few more farewells, and then their guests departed, leaving Hope to deal with leftover food and Kurtis to put away the presents he had received.

"Now that all the excitement is over, I'd say it's time for bed," Max stated.

"Agreed," Lance said. "The sooner we fall asleep, the sooner we wake up to a new day!"

Leigh caught on to what he was saying. "Which means we can go back to Teknisk Wereld."

"Yep. So I'll bid you all good night," Lance said.

Other pleasantries were said, and then Leigh headed to her room. She prepared for sleeping and got into bed, gazing at the orb Hope had given her.

_Mom said that God gave her this from part of her soul,_ Leigh thought. _She's cherished this for a long time… so she must have had a good reason to give this to me. Why now?_

Leigh was unable to dwell on it for long, as sleep claimed her almost instantly.

To be continued…


	3. An Honorable Ally

This is one of the chapters I was looking forward to. Hurray for finally getting it written!

**Chapter Three: An Honorable Ally**

Everyone was up and about much earlier this morning than the previous one. Even Kurtis got out of bed quickly. Four of them were anticipating the day ahead, with their guide being the only exception.

"I'm not looking forward to this," Chasity said to Petra while they waited for the teenagers to finish preparing.

"Neither am I," Petra said.

"Let's hope they at least choose somewhere interesting to head towards." Chasity dropped the subject as they reemerged, Leigh wearing her orb and Kurtis with his vest. "Are you all ready to go?"

"As ready as we'll ever be!" Leigh said.

They all proceeded to lie on the floor, strapping on their Duel Disks and attaching their Envoyant Machines. A minute later, they were unconscious.

…

The area they appeared in was nearby the town, which they could see clearly due to the grasslands surrounding them. A huge, round building stood a short distance away, capturing their attention at once.

"What is that place?" Courtney asked.

"It has to be the coliseum!" Kurtis said. "All right! I've wanted to see that place ever since Dad told us about it!"

"What do you think, Chasity? Would this be a good place to start?" Lance inquired.

Chasity nodded. "It's fun to see the fights."

"You still fight here, don't you?" Lance said.

"Yep. Petra and I come every now and then to have a few matches," Chasity answered. "Although sometimes we just watch, like we will be doing now."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Kurtis said.

The mention of Petra had reminded Leigh of something. "Wait! Before we do, can we try something?"

"Sure," Courtney said. "What do you want to do?"

Leigh took out her Soul Card. "Let's try calling our Soul Monsters. Gaston said some only appear in dangerous situations, but others would come without one."

"I'm game," Lance said, sliding out his. Kurtis and Courtney did so as well while Chasity and Petra watched.

"How do we summon a Soul Monster for the first time?" Leigh asked Chasity. "Would he or she just appear?"

"Hold your card into the air," Chasity instructed. "Wait about ten seconds. If you don't feel anything, your Soul Monster isn't going to come out yet. Otherwise, what you said will basically happen. Also, I suggest doing it one at a time, or we'll be overrun if all four suddenly decide to appear."

"Okay," Leigh said, holding up her card. She mentally counted out ten seconds, and then lowered it with a sigh. "Nothing."

"My turn!" Kurtis brought his up, but had no better luck than Leigh. "Darn it."

"Looks like this isn't the right time. I'll give it a shot anyway," Lance said. He mimicked them, eventually sliding the card away. "Nope."

"Everyone else has tried it, so I may as well too." Courtney raised hers in the air.

This time, a white glow surrounded it. Courtney stared at it in shock, and then said, "Rise, fledgling of wings! It is time to soar the winds!"

Before her appeared what looked like a cross between a human and a bird. Her body was mainly that of a woman's, with a black leotard of sorts that exposed much of her skin, hot pink tights over her legs, and blue bracelets around her ankles. The bird parts were mainly her limbs, with pink wings sprouting from her elbows, her hands and feet being orange and clawed, and white tail feathers on her backside. Her long, blonde hair fell to her waist, and her eyes were purple.

For a moment, Courtney and their Soul Monster stared at each other. Courtney abruptly broke the silence by leaping forward and hugging the monster, crying, "Oh my gosh, you're so CUTE!"

The Soul Monster squeaked in surprise, struggling a few times instinctively before giving up and letting Courtney keep a fierce grip on her. Leigh, Kurtis, and Lance exchanged confused glances while Chasity rolled her eyes. "Typical," she said to the sky. "Courtney had to go and get a cute one."

Once Courtney let go of her, she looked over her Soul Monster more carefully, saying, "You're a Harpy Girl, right?"

"Y-yes," she answered feebly. "M-my name is Naomi."

"Geez, I think she speaks more quietly than my mom," Lance remarked. "Although I'm not about to place a bet on it."

"Wow, I didn't expect to get a shy Soul Monster, since I'm anything but that," Courtney said. "But that's okay! I'm Courtney, and I'm sure we'll get along just fine!"

Naomi appeared reassured by that. "I'll be happy to help in any way that I can!"

"Which probably amounts to nothing," Petra muttered, unimpressed by the stuttering Soul Monster.

Apparently Naomi heard that, because she flushed and turned her gaze away. Courtney threw Petra an irritated look and said, "Don't mind her. That's Petra, and she's with Chasity. Leigh, Kurtis, and Lance are friends of mine."

"H-hello," Naomi said. "D-do you not have Soul Monsters?"

"Not yet," Leigh replied. "Hopefully they will appear soon."

"Until then, let's check this place out!" Kurtis said, indicating to the coliseum.

"Do you think that's a good idea? Naomi might not like it if it's too loud," Lance pointed out.

"T-that's okay," Naomi said. "I-I'll be f-fine if I-I'm with Courtney."

"Then in we go," Chasity said. "I'll lead the way."

Chasity brought them up to the building and into a dark hallway. She ignored the doors and continued down it until they emerged outside, amongst several bleachers. The stands were highly crowded with spectators, all who were watching a match in the center of the ring and cheering wildly.

"Over there," Chasity shouted over the crowd, indicating to an empty spot at the bottom level. They wove their way through the people until finally reaching it and sitting down.

They were in time to see the current fight draw to a close. A large red dragon was facing off against a tall, heavily-muscled man. It had taken flight to breathe fire at the man, but he inserted a card into his Duel Disk and vanished, reappearing on the dragon's back. The crowd gasped as the dragon roared and writhed in an attempt to knock him off, one that failed miserably. The man inserted another card and hit the dragon several times with his fists, sending it crashing to the arena floor. It vanished, leaving the man standing in the center.

The spectators screamed their approval as an announcer declared, "And Galuf is the victor against a wild Knight Dragon! What a bold maneuver!"

"Must be someone who doesn't come very often," Chasity remarked. "Never heard of him before."

"Are you familiar with most of the fighters?" Leigh asked.

"I recognize the names of some," Chasity answered. "Usually the ones who are constantly attending. It's easy to size up who is a veteran and who isn't though. I'd say that man attended a lot at one point, but appears rarely now."

Once he had left the ring, the announcer said, "Next up is a fight that will be one-on-one, humans only!"

"Humans can fight each other?" Courtney said in surprise, with Naomi trembling beside her.

"They sure can," Chasity confirmed. "There are a lot of combinations possible. Humans or Soul Monsters can fight wild monsters, other humans, other Soul Monsters, there's really no limit to the possibilities."

The announcer continued by saying, "The contestants will be allowed one weapon of choice, real or made by support card! Otherwise, support cards are banned! There are no special conditions in this fight! Now, let's have the fighters come forth!"

From the side opposite of where they sat came a tall, young man with a brown shirt, blue jeans, and brown tennis shoes. Even from their distance, they could see his black hair was very greasy, and that he wore glasses with black frames.

"Our first contestant is one who is beginning to learn the true arts of fighting! A swordman with great skill, we have Andre!" the announcer said. Applause broke out from the stands as Andre grinned arrogantly.

"Know him?" Lance asked Chasity.

"Nope. That one is definitely a newcomer, and he really doesn't impress me," Chasity said.

While Andre was looking at the crowd, his eyes settled on Leigh, and he froze for a long moment. When he finally turned his gaze away, Leigh felt relieved, but uneasy about his interest. She tried to convince herself she had imagined it as she concentrated on the match that was about to occur.

After the clapping was done, the announcer said, "And his opponent is a frequent attendee of the coliseum! A fighter of unsurpassed skill, we have Shane!"

The crowd reacted more enthusiastically to this name, cheering as he stepped into the arena. He was younger than Andre, most likely around seventeen, and wore a white t-shirt with brown shorts and gray shoes. His fire-red hair, which went to his waist, was kept in a ponytail. They could not make out much else, except that over his right arm was a black glove. It covered his hand completely and ended above his elbow, near where his shirt sleeve was.

"Now this should be something worth seeing," Chasity remarked, sounding much more interested.

"You've heard of him?" Leigh assumed.

"Yeah. Lots of rumors have been circulating about how good he is," Chasity said. "I've never had the chance to see him fight myself, so it'll be nice to get to."

"Geez, what's with his hair?" Kurtis said. "He looks like some kind of hippy."

"Why don't you go down there and ask him yourself?" Lance suggested. That promptly shut Kurtis up.

Shane did not even glance at the audience, his attention solely on his opponent. He made a small bow towards him, which Andre completely ignored, instead sneering.

"Each contestant may select one weapon!" the announcer said. Andre slid a card into his Duel Disk, causing a sword to form in his hands. He looked at his opponent expectedly, but Shane did not do the same, instead taking up a fighting stance.

"Huh? Why didn't he pick a weapon?" Courtney asked.

"If what I've heard is true, you're about to find out," Chasity stated.

After they had done that, the announcer said, "So, if both contestants are ready, the fight shall begin… now!"

Andre instantly charged at these words, swinging his sword in a blur. Shane was ready though, and ducked under it, his left arm shooting up at the same time to hit Andre in the stomach. He doubled over, gasping, which gave Shane an opening. He grabbed Andre's right wrist with his right hand, apparently hoping to make him drop his sword. A look of horrified shock and pain came over Andre's face as he let go of his weapon, which provided more than enough time for Shane to lash out with his left arm. Once, twice, thrice… and one that caught him directly in the head, sending him to the ground, apparently out cold.

"What a total mismatch!" the announcer cried amongst the crazed cheering the audience gave. "Shane easily takes the victory from Andre! Such strength that one has!"

"And that would be why," Chasity said to her stunned companions, who watched a man take Andre's unconscious body out of the ring.

Lance whistled. "A martial arts user, and a good one from the looks of it!"

Shane bowed once before turning to leave. As he approached the exit, he glanced up, his eyes meeting with theirs. He looked puzzled for a moment, but broke his gaze away and left.

"After that, I can't wait to see how some of the other good ones fight!" Kurtis said, apparently having forgotten his earlier judgment on Shane.

Courtney noticed that Naomi was still shaking. "Is something wrong?"

"I-I d-don't l-like f-fighting m-much…" she stammered.

Courtney frowned slightly, and then said, "I'm going to take Naomi outside. You guys can stay here and watch if you want."

"If you're going, I'll leave too," Leigh said.

"Same here," Lance seconded.

Kurtis sighed. "Fine, I'll go."

"I suppose we can," Chasity said, rising. Petra muttered something under her breath, probably about Naomi, but got up to leave as well.

As they went outside, they heard the announcer speaking of the next match, which was apparently between a man named Telicis and someone named Grarl. Then they were outside, where the area was empty, most likely due to everyone being inside to watch the matches.

"So where should we go next?" Leigh asked.

"How about the mountains?" Courtney suggested, which caused Naomi to perk up. "I've wanted to see those most of all."

"Me too," Lance said. "It's my parent's favorite place, so I'm interested."

"I'm all right with that," Kurtis said, and Leigh nodded.

"Seems the vote's unanimous," Chasity said. "We'll head there then-"

"You're not going anywhere!"

The group turned to see Andre standing a good distance away, nearby the arena entrance. He looked furious, probably due to his recent loss. This did not prompt Chasity to be polite. "Actually, we are. Why do you care?"

Andre pointed at them. "You're the group he wants me to kill! And I will do as he commands!" Without warning, he brought up a gun, pointing it at Leigh.

"Are you insane?" Kurtis yelped.

"No, I'm following orders!" Andre snapped. "And if you take one more step, swordwoman, you're friend dies!"

Petra had been attempting to approach, but halted at this, glaring at him. Leigh was terrified, but she managed to say, "Who? Who asked you to do this?"

"As if I would reveal his name to lowlifes like you!" Andre said. "Now prepare to die-"

"Excuse me."

Andre turned instinctively to see who said that, which gave the speaker a clear target. He slammed his right fist into Andre's face, knocking him to the ground in a heap while his glasses fell to the ground in several pieces. The speaker took a support card from Andre's Duel Disk and tore it, causing the gun to vanish, and approached the group.

"You're…" Leigh trailed off as he stopped in front of them.

"Is everyone all right?" Shane asked, his green eyes surveying them. "I wasn't sure if I got here in time to stop him."

"You were just in time," Lance answered, clearly relieved.

"Yeah. Thanks a lot for helping," Leigh said gratefully.

"Happy to assist." He glanced at Andre again, who had not budged. This seemed to reassure him, for he turned back to the group to say, "I saw you in the arena, but I can't say I've noticed you before that. Are you newcomers?"

"We just signed up," Courtney said. "I'm Courtney, she's Leigh, he's Kurtis, he's Lance, she's Chasity, her Soul Monster is Petra, and my Soul Monster is Naomi."

"Pleased to meet all of you," Shane replied. "I assume you already know who I am, so an introduction of me would be meaningless."

Chasity frowned slightly. "You said you were not sure if you got here in time. Did you know we were being harassed by him?"

"Yes," Shane answered. "I'll show you how." He whistled sharply.

In response, a blur came diving from the sky, halting next to Shane. He appeared to be a young boy who wore a dark-brown short-sleeved shirt and tan pants. His brown hair was wild, with spikes tossed every way, and his brown eyes glinted mischievously. What was most surprising was how he hovered next to Shane, with wind that somehow supported him.

"Hey Shane! Need me for something?" he said, grinning.

"I wanted to show them who you were." Shane said to the confused group, "This is Jin, my Soul Monster."

"A Force Wind Kid?" Courtney said.

"Right on the first try! And here I thought nobody would ever recognize me!" Jin said, doing a somersault in midair.

"He's a playful one," Lance remarked.

"I know that all too well," Shane said, smiling slightly at Jin's antics. "He was flying around the coliseum when he saw what was going on, so he alerted me."

"That must have been a pretty quick message," Chasity said.

"Because I'm a pretty quick Soul Monster!" Jin answered, zipping by her to prove his point.

Naomi was hiding behind Courtney due to her nervousness around the two new arrivals, but Courtney herself had no such problem. "It was great of you to help though."

"Yeah, we almost got nailed by that freak!" Kurtis said, shivering.

"But I don't understand," Leigh said, looking at Andre. "Who ordered him to kill us?"

"And why?" Lance added.

"If we can bring him around, we can interrogate him," Chasity stated, walking towards Andre with Petra.

Kurtis made sure they were out of earshot before whispering to Shane, "Just warning you, but when Chasity has that look in her eye, she's about to do something that isn't pretty."

Shane blinked. "I'll be sure to remember that."

When Chasity was a short distance away, Andre suddenly grabbed a card and slammed it into his Duel Disk. He vanished at once, leaving Chasity to curse her ill timing.

"What did he do?" Courtney asked.

"That looked like a Receding Circuit," Shane said. "He teleported to another, set location. His stamina must be a lot better than I thought if he could recover that quickly."

"Either that or his skull was thicker than you thought," Kurtis joked. "I'm thinking that's the real reason."

Chasity and Petra returned to them, both with expressions of disgust. "I can't believe he got away," Chasity growled.

"It worries me as well," Shane said. "Leigh, you said someone ordered him to kill all of you?"

"That's what he claimed," Leigh answered.

"What a creep!" Jin said. "Makes me wish you had hit him more than you did, Shane!"

Shane did not respond to that, apparently deep in thought. He looked up, saying, "He might have teleported away to tell of his failure. If so, that person could come after you. Even though we have just met, I am concerned for the safety of all of you. Can I stay with you for a while?"

"You mean while we're in Teknisk Wereld?" Kurtis asked.

"Yes. I wish to be there to help if someone else comes," Shane said.

"Yeah, let us come!" Jin said excitedly. "The past few weeks have been so _boring_! All the coliseum fights have been too easy, and we have barely anyone to talk to! This would be a totally awesome and new experience!"

"…He thinks fighting gunmen is fun?" Courtney said.

"It doesn't surprise me," Shane said, torn between exasperation and amusement. "Either way, as you can see, we both want to help, if it is all right with you."

"I don't see why not," Leigh answered. "What do you guys think?"

"Hey, he helped us already, why not let him do it again?" Kurtis said.

"I'd like to have him along," Courtney said, Lance nodding in agreement.

Chasity eyed Shane for a moment, and then said, "All right, you're in. You've already proved you're strong and willing to help, so I have no qualms."

"It ups our survival rate, that's always a plus," Petra muttered. Naomi merely gave a shy nod.

"Awesome! Looks like we're part of the club now!" Jin said, twisting in place. "So, do we get free t-shirts for joining?"

"Yeah, ones that say, 'I joined a small group of harassed travelers and all I got was this lousy t-shirt'," Kurtis said.

"If I wasn't a Soul Monster and all, I'd totally wear that!" Jin declared.

"It seems he has found someone he can relate to," Shane remarked. "Anyway, thank you for letting us accompany you. Where are you headed?"

"The mountains," Courtney answered. "Have you been there before?"

"I have been in almost every location of Teknisk Wereld," Shane said.

"Good, I won't be the only one who knows my way around," Chasity stated. "Let's get moving. We shouldn't stay in this place."

The group recognized the wisdom in her words and was quick to follow her, leaving the area deserted.

…

"S-sir, I did all that I could!" Andre protested, blood running down his pale face. "There was an interference, that's all, an interference! I'll kill the one who did it too! Just let me try again, please!"

A cold response overrode his stammering. "You have already failed. My master does not accept failures, nor do I. I will send you to meet him… in Hell!"

Andre's green eyes widened in horror. "No… please don't…!"

Anything else he would have said was cut off by a terrible scream.

…

While they walked towards the mountains, taking a route over the plains, Lance said to Shane, "Your fighting skills were amazing! How long have you been practicing martial arts?"

"Ten years," Shane answered. "It's one of the things I have practiced most often."

"Because you enjoy fighting?" Kurtis asked.

Shane hesitated, and shook his head. "Sometimes it is fun to test my skills against another person's in friendly combat, but overall, no. I dislike hurting people."

"Really?" Courtney said.

"Yes. I prefer to talk things out peacefully rather than resorting to punches," Shane stated. "Unfortunately, not everyone feels that way. I learned martial arts so I could defend myself, and others, from those people."

"That's Shane for you!" Jin said cheerfully. "He's always being the noble one!"

"I think that's great," Leigh said to Shane. "Did you learn from multiple teachers or one?"

"I have one mentor," Shane said. "He teaches me to this day."

"Shane learned from one of the best!" Jin said. "That's why he's so good at it!"

By this time, they were near the bottom of the first mountain. As they approached it, Lance asked, "What's his name?"

"My mentor's? It's…" Shane trailed off, his eyes narrowing.

They followed his gaze to see a man standing before them. He had a black cloak, a Duel Disk strapped to his left arm, short black hair, and malicious brown eyes. Three things caught their attention more than that though. One was that around his neck was a metal collar, and his wrists had shackles. Chains trailed from them a short distance, not enough to impede movement but enough to be noticeable. Another was the flaming orb that hung around his neck. Finally, they were captivated by the black pentagram carved on his forehead, which was glowing.

Leigh saw something else as well. Surrounding the man was a black aura, one that sounded hauntingly familiar based on her mother's descriptions.

"That man…" Leigh whispered. "His appearance… he couldn't be…"

"Hey! Who are you supposed to be?" Jin demanded.

"Your executioner," the man said, smirking. "I shall slay you, cursed descendants, and your souls shall be delivered to my Lord! I swear this upon the name I was given, Diablos!"

"No way!" Kurtis exclaimed. "The Diablos from the Generals of Hell? You're him? That's impossible!"

"Yet he matches the description perfectly," Lance said. "Other than the chains. What are those supposed to be?"

"They show my servitude to my master!" Diablos said.

"You recognize this man?" Shane asked.

"Have you ever read the Teknisk Wereld books?" Courtney inquired, with Naomi hiding behind her.

"Yes," Shane answered. "I was under the impression that Diablos perished though."

"We all thought that," Chasity said bitterly. "But then how do you explain him being here now?"

"He's obviously a zombie after our brains," Jin said, floating upside down in a cross-legged position.

"You are taking this far too calmly for my liking," Petra stated, her hand on her sword hilt. "If he is who we think he is, we are in serious danger."

"Not if I can help it," Shane said grimly. He directed to Diablos, "I noticed you have a deck. Therefore, I challenge you to a duel. The winner is allowed to set the conditions for the loser alone. If you wish to hurt these people, you will have to defeat me, and then go through them. Agreed?"

"I don't care," Diablos sneered. "The more people I kill, the more souls my Lord will receive!"

"Uh, Shane, do you know what he means by that?" Jin asked, now hovering next to him.

"Satan, I assume," Shane said. "If we lose, our souls will go to Hell."

Jin slapped a hand over his face. "Aw man! I really hope you don't lose! Hell sounds so dull!"

"…Dull?" Kurtis said.

"Yeah! I mean, would you want to go there to roast in flames for eternity? That's almost as boring as watching paint dry!" Jin replied.

"…I'm not sure 'boring' is the word I would use, but… the point is, that would definitely be bad," Leigh said. "Are you sure about this, Shane? He came for us, after all."

"I would feel guilty if I did not do this," Shane stated. "Don't worry; I will not lose." He held out his right, gloved arm, which had a Duel Disk on it. It unfolded, revealing his deck.

"Yeah! Let's dropkick him straight back to Hell!" Jin said.

"You have no idea who you are messing with, boy…" Diablos growled, drawing his cards. "You have no idea…"

"Then show me," Shane said calmly, doing the same. "Show me if you are as strong as many have claimed."

Shane: 8000

Diablos: 8000

"If you think you're so great, let's see what you can do!" Diablos taunted. "You can go first!"

"All right," Shane said. "I summon Great Angs. (1800/600) That is all."

"Great Angs? What does that do?" Courtney asked.

"Nothing," Chasity said flatly. "He has no effect."

"What? Then why the heck would he use that?" Kurtis said.

"I'm sure he has a good reason," Lance replied. "Let's watch and see what happens."

"Very unimpressive!" Diablos said. "I summon Sonic Bird. (1400/1000) When I summon him, he allows me to take a ritual magic card from my deck. I choose Ritual of Illusions! I lay two cards down to end my turn."

"Right… didn't Diablos run a deck based on Sacrifice?" Leigh recalled.

"Hardly anyone uses that card now!" Kurtis said. "What does it even do? I can't really remember."

"We're about to find out," Petra said.

"I play Tempest!" Shane said. "All of the magic and trap cards on the field are destroyed!"

"Good one, Shane!" Jin complimented.

"That's exactly what I wanted you to do!" Diablos declared. "I activate my trap card, Judgement of Anubis! I discard a card-Senju God in this case-to negate and destroy a magic card that has the effect of destroying magic or trap cards! It also destroys one monster on your field, dealing damage equal to its attack, so your Great Angs is gone!"

The Great Angs exploded, with the blast catching Shane. He took the blow steadfastly.

Shane: 6200

Diablos: 8000

"I take it back. That was a horrible idea and it never should have been considered," Jin said, brushing ash off his clothes sourly.

"Actually, this benefits me," Shane said. "I remove Great Angs to special summon Spirit of Fire: Efreet!" (1700/1000)

"Spirit of Fire?" Leigh said, staring at the red giant that appeared. "That reminds me of that card Courtney has in her deck. Spirit of Wind: Garuda, right?"

"Right," Courtney confirmed. "There are four Spirit cards: one for Fire, Water, Wind, and Earth. I only run the Wind one, Garuda, but they're all pretty good."

"Think he's running a Fire Main-Type deck, or a Spirit deck?" Kurtis questioned.

Shane continued as they conversed. "I summon Neobug!" (1800/1700)

"Okay, scratch that," Kurtis said. "Spirits."

"Another non-effect monster," Chasity observed. "He probably uses them for removal bait to get Spirits out. I suppose that could be effective."

"Efreet attacks Sonic Bird!" Shane said. "When it is my battle phase, he gains 300 more attack points. (2000/1000) Neobug attacks directly!"

The Efreet's fire blast scorched the Sonic Bird, leaving only charred feathers behind. It left the way open for the Neobug to slash at Diablos with its scythe-like arms.

Shane: 6200

Diablos: 5600

"I am done," Shane concluded. (1700/1000)

"You'll regret doing that," Diablos swore. "I summon Critter (1000/600) and play Ritual of Illusions, the other card I set last turn! By sacrificing Critter, I can bring out Sacrifice!" (0/0)

"Which means you get a monster from your deck with 1500 attack or less and place it in your hand," Shane stated.

"I choose another Sacrifice for Critter's effect," Diablos said. "Then I activate Sacrifice's effect! He can absorb one monster and gain its stats! This time, he'll absorb Neobug!"

The Neobug screeched as it was drawn into the Sacrifice through a black vortex. It appeared in its gray wing-like limb, showing where the Sacrifice's power was coming from. (1800/1700)

"Sacrifice attacks Efreet!" Diablos said.

The Sacrifice began to drain energy from the captive Neobug, focusing the power into its single eye. Then it shot a beam out of it, piercing the Efreet.

Shane: 6100

Diablos: 5600

"He did it all wrong!" Jin complained. "He was supposed to yell, 'IMMA CHARGIN' MAH LAZER!' Just like that!"

"I find myself agreeing with him a lot," Kurtis commented.

"Unfortunately," Chasity muttered.

Although Shane was not cracking jokes like Jin was, he did not seem overly worried by the Sacrifice. "Does the absorbed monster count as an equip card?"

"It does," Diablos confirmed. "If you attack when Sacrifice has absorbed a monster, the absorbed monster is destroyed instead of him. We each take damage from the attack if that's the case."

"Hm…" Shane glanced at Jin. "I think now would be a good time to use your Deck Master ability."

"Okay! Name what you want!" Jin said, holding out his right arm.

"Earth," Shane answered. "For Efreet."

"Gotcha!" A brown wind formed around Jin's arm. It uncoiled and leapt from his hand, diving into the ground.

"What did he do?" Diablos said.

"Once per turn, Jin can change the Main-Type of one of my monsters," Shane explained. "That monster can either be in my hand, on my field, or in my Cemetery. The monster returns to its original Main-Type at the end of my turn. I chose to have Efreet become an Earth Main-Type. Therefore, I can remove him to special summon Spirit of Earth: Titan!" (1700/1000)

"His effect is?" Diablos asked, eyeing the rock warrior warily.

"When it is your battle phase, his attack increases by 300," Shane said. "I place one card and end my turn."

"So you were hoping to stall me with a stronger monster," Diablos said, sneering. "That won't work! I equip Sacrifice with Ritual Weapon! When given to a level six or lower ritual monster, its attack increases by 1500! (3300/1700) Sacrifice attacks Titan!"

"I activate Cyclone!" Shane countered. "I can destroy a magic or trap card with this, and I'm assuming an absorbed monster falls under the same category! That means Neobug is destroyed, leaving Sacrifice vulnerable!" (1500/0)

The Titan slammed its axe into the Sacrifice, destroying it in an instant. (2000/1000)

Shane: 6100

Diablos: 5100

"Just because you have destroyed my Sacrifice does not mean I cannot get more!" Diablos declared. "I summon Manju God, (1400/1000) who allows me to get either a ritual or a ritual monster when summoned. I choose Ritual of Illusions! I play a permanent magic card, Reincarnation! When I sacrifice a monster for a ritual, that monster is shuffled into my deck rather than placed in the Cemetery. Then I play Ritual of Illusions, sacrificing Manju God for Sacrifice! Sacrifice absorbs Titan, and that ends my turn." (1700/1000)

"I will take some damage from this, but it will be worth it," Shane said. "I play Early Burial, paying 800 Life Points to special summon Neobug!"

Shane: 5300

Diablos: 5100

"I summon Sea Dragon Warrior of Darkness. (1800/1500) Neobug attacks Sacrifice to destroy Titan, and Sea Dragon attacks Sacrifice to destroy him! I am done."

Shane: 5200

Diablos: 3300

"Another Sacrifice gone, but this one will be coming back!" Diablos said. "I play Continue the Contract, paying 800 Life Points to special summon Sacrifice from my Cemetery!"

Shane: 5200

Diablos: 2500

"Sacrifice absorbs your Sea Dragon, (1800/1500) and I equip him with Optical Camouflage Armor! When equipped to a level one monster, that monster can attack directly, so Sacrifice will!"

This time, the beam bypassed his monster, hitting Shane. He seemed pained by the hit, but straightened up swiftly.

Shane: 3400

Diablos: 2500

"You all right?" Jin asked him.

"Yes. Are you done?" Shane said.

"At the moment," Diablos answered.

"I will have Neobug attack Sea Dragon, killing them both," Shane said. "I end my turn. That way, you cannot absorb any of my monsters."

Diablos glared at Shane. "Well aren't you a clever one. I summon Manju God (1400/1000) and get a Ritual of Illusions! Manju God attacks!"

Shane: 2000

Diablos: 2500

"I end," Diablos said. "It's not like you have enough monsters to kill me this turn."

"On the contrary, I do," Shane stated. "I summon Ninja Dog Wonder Dog (1800/1000) and remove Neobug for another Spirit of Earth: Titan!"

"That isn't enough!" Diablos protested.

"Not on their own, but I have another monster to use." Shane glanced at Jin. "You're up."

"About time!" Jin said, soaring onto the field. (1500/1600)

"Titan attacks Sacrifice, Ninja Dog attacks Manju God, and Jin attacks directly!" Shane said.

The Titan smashed apart the Sacrifice, and the Ninja Dog stuck the Manju God full of shruikens. With nothing left to stop him, Jin created a huge gust to throw Diablos back, hitting the ground harshly.

Shane: 2000

Diablos: 0

"Take that!" Jin said triumphantly, returning to Shane's side.

"Wow, he really made some smart plays," Lance said.

"Yeah. I didn't think much of Spirits before, but it looks like they work well when used correctly," Courtney observed.

Diablos staggered upright, snarling at them. "How dare you defy me? I am the greatest servant of the Lord of Hell!"

"If that is the case, your Lord must not have many efficient servants," Shane stated. "You lost, and my condition for you will be this: leave, and never confront us again."

"Hah! Like I'll do that!" Diablos said, raising his hands. Black energy formed around them. "I have orders from my master! He says you are to die, and that means you will die!"

Shane tensed at the attack he was preparing. "I will not let you harm them!" He suddenly rushed towards Diablos.

"Shane, no!" Jin yelled. "You'll get killed rushing in like that!"

"Fool! I'll send you to Hell!" Diablos said, bringing his hands down…

…Only to freeze. He stared straight forward as the black energy faded from his hands, and then vanished, leaving an object to clang against the ground.

To be continued…


	4. The Enslaved

Ah, writer's block. What an annoyance it can be. I was very busy with trying to catch up in school work, and when I finally caught up, I found it very difficult to get back into a writing mood. I think I have finally accomplished it though. A wave of nostalgia has convinced me to try again. Said nostalgia came because the weather has finally become warm and, surprisingly, because I have felt ill. Odd thing to motivate me, but if it works, it works.

**Chapter Four: The Enslaved**

Stunned silence followed the abrupt disappearance. That was soon dealt with by Jin though, who flew next to where Shane stood.

"Are you all right? You nearly ran straight into his attack!" Jin exclaimed. For the first time since they had met him, the group caught worry in his tone.

Shane slowly nodded. "Whatever stopped him did so just in time."

"Good to hear! It shows my efforts weren't wasted."

Their eyes darted to the source of the voice, a man who stood by a large rock at the foot of the mountain. His outfit was clearly based with one color in mind, for his shirt, pants, shoes, trenchcoat, and gloves were all black. He even wore a short, black top hat, with the brim tilted downwards to cast his face into shadow. Thanks to that, his eyes could not be clearly seen, although his neat, black hair was visible, along with enough of his skin to show how pale it was.

"You did that?" Leigh said as he approached.

"Yep. I heard a commotion and decided to see what was happening. When I realized he was about to attack, I decided to interfere." The man stopped at where Diablos had been and bent over to pick up something.

"Why?" Chasity said skeptically. "What reason do you have to help us?"

"Two things, actually," the man said, straightening. "One being that I don't like sore losers. The conditions were pretty clear, and he was about to break them anyway. Can't stand people like that. Aside from that, he was raving about Hell and the like. Fanatics annoy me in general, but I especially dislike ones on that subject. That answer your question?"

Chasity would have responded if not for Shane doing so first. "Whether your reasons be that or not, you saved us. Thank you for your help."

"No problem," the man replied. "Nice to know I did my good deed of the day. Not that I often actually get those in, but once in a while, it happens."

"I think we're all overlooking an obvious question here," Lance remarked. "Who are you?"

With a grin, the man flipped over the object in his hand to reveal what it was: a playing card, specifically the ace of spades. "I go by Ace, as suggested by my calling card."

"You used a _card_ to kill Diablos?" Kurtis said in disbelief.

"I don't know if kill is the right word for it, seeing as he vanished on contact, but I did use this to get rid of him," Ace answered. He turned it to show the back of the card, which was a fitting black that glinted in the sunlight. "These are made of metal, and they're sharp as razors."

"Why do you carry those around?" Courtney asked.

"Have to have something to defend myself with, and support cards can be negated." Ace spun the card once before thrusting it into a small pouch at his side, which looked to be roughly the size of a playing deck. "Most people wouldn't get suspicious over a deck of regular cards, so they work."

"And you can throw those things accurately enough to hit people? Cool!" Jin said excitedly, apparently over his earlier worry for Shane.

"It's not 'cool', it's suspicious!" Chasity snapped. "This card-thrower, dressed in a ridiculous outfit that's more suitable for some gambling movie-villain, comes out of nowhere to cut down our enemy and makes no inquiries as to who he was or what he was doing? We can't trust him!"

Ace shrugged at this. "You have a point, Miss. Caution keeps us alive."

Chasity flared at that. "_Miss?_ Excuse me, but we just met, and if you're trying to hit on me-"

"What? Whoa, you have it all wrong!" Ace protested. "It's to be polite; I address everyone that way out of habit!"

"Then are you implying I'm old or something?" Chasity snarled. "Because if you are-"

"Chasity, that's enough!" Leigh cut in. "I'm sure he isn't our enemy! Why else would he save us?"

"She speaks the truth," Shane said. "Why are you so wary of him? You did not react this way when I helped."

"I'd heard of you before, and there wasn't anything suspicious about you," Chasity stated. "Unlike him!"

"I'm not ready to trust him myself," Petra said. "Then again, I don't really trust anyone."

Ace put a hand to his hat brim, pulling it a little lower. "If it makes you feel better, I wasn't planning on sticking around anyway. I'll head off now." He turned to leave.

Shane reached out in protest. "Wait! Surely there must be something we can do to repay you!"

His words caused Ace to glance back momentarily with a small smile. "Your gratitude's reward enough. I didn't expect even that. We probably won't meet again, but there's always a chance, and I like betting on low odds. Until next time!" With that said, he walked a short distance away and slid a card into his Duel Disk, vanishing.

Jin sighed. "And there he goes. We could have had a great ally, but nooo, he's too 'suspicious'!"

"My reasoning was perfectly legitimate," Chasity said, glaring at where Ace had been. "There's something about that man that tells me we can't trust him."

"I think you're being a bit paranoid," Lance said. "Sure, Diablos showing up gives a reason for it, yet to take it out against the one who helped us?"

"That 'paranoia' could save us from being backstabbed," Chasity said icily.

Kurtis rolled his eyes. "Yeah, because we're going to be backstabbed by our savior. He would have let Diablos finish us off if he wanted us dead!"

Chasity was about to reply, but she was cut off by Naomi saying, "P-please stop! W-we won't g-get anywhere f-fighting each other!"

"She's right," Shane stated, walking over to them. "We should focus on the main problem at hand."

"Diablos," Lance said grimly. "How was he here?"

"The only possible explanation I can think of is that he was brought back to life," Courtney said. "But that's ludicrous…"

"Is it? With everything that was shown in the Teknisk Wereld novels, I would say this is not so unusual," Shane said.

"Yeah, weren't revival techniques used in there?" Lance recalled. "Like with Zack and Randall?"

"Good point," Leigh said. "But this didn't seem to be with either of those methods."

"It leaves the possibility of revival open though," Kurtis added. "There's got to be other ways to do it."

"Those chains probably had something to do with it," Courtney noted.

"Probably," Chasity agreed. "We have another issue to cover. Is Diablos the only one?"

A silence fell on them at that question, one that Petra answered with, "It would be safest to assume not."

"We can't jump to conclusions yet," Lance said firmly. "Let's continue up the mountain, but carefully. We'll keep our wits about us."

"Yes, let's do that," Leigh said. "Unless anyone has any better ideas?"

Nobody replied to that, prompting Jin to say, "Then what're we waiting for? Up we go!"

Chasity and Petra led the way up while Shane and Jin served as a rearguard. The group hiked up steadily, finding it a decent physical challenge but not too taxing. It gave the four newcomers plenty of time to enjoy the beautiful scenery as they went up higher. They were soon quite a distance away from the ground, which gave them a better sight of where they had previously been. The forest stretched out beneath them, buildings from the town were easily spotted, red rocks could be seen where a canyon area was, and the waters of the lake that led to the ocean sparkled in the sunlight.

"It's amazing…" Leigh said. "Such a large world, even though it was made from data!"

"I can see why my parents love this place," Lance stated. "The view is incredible."

"Just wait 'til we get to the top!" Jin said, twisting in midair. "You'll feel like you can see everything from up there!"

"That should be great," Courtney replied. Naomi nodded in shy agreement.

Petra had kept her gaze on the path ahead, for she was always wary. That was how she caught sight of someone darting out from behind a rock. Her warrior instincts kicked in instantly, causing her to swiftly draw her katana. The rasp of metal caused everyone to turn to her.

"Someone is here," Petra said as she tried to catch sight of the person.

At those words, a figure leapt towards her, a spear at the ready. Petra sidestepped the blow and swiped with her blade, forcing the figure to quickly dance back. Another strike was attempted by Petra, but the spear spun in a circle, deflecting her cut successfully. The figure took the opportunity to stab at her. Petra dived underneath the spear, tumbling over and slicing the figure across the chest.

That blow ended the fight. The attacker stumbled away, his brown cloak hood falling down. It revealed his short, brown hair and matching eyes, which gazed ahead without centering on any of them. Around his neck was a burning orb, and he had chains and a collar that matched the ones Diablos had worn. Leigh could also see a dark aura surrounding him, one that chilled her.

A Soul Monster came out, standing in front of his comrade to protect him. He appeared to be a brown-skinned man who wore a blue shirt, green pants, and brown belt, with a black and white robe over them. Noticeable were his short, black beard and the golden staff with a cobra's head at the top that he carried. His brown eyes seemed completely blank, not registering anything.

"The way your eyes look… you must be blind," Shane said to the spear-carrying man. "That would make you Morte?"

"Correct," Morte said. "I have been ordered to slay all of you. If I cannot do that through combat, I will succeed through dueling."

"What do you mean?" Leigh asked. "Who ordered you to do that?"

"I am afraid I cannot tell you," Morte answered. He frowned slightly. "To be honest, I wish I had not been chosen for this. Even though Hell is a painful place, it was… visible. I could finally see… and now I have been robbed of sight again. Send me back there… to where I belong… I do not want to be… an Enslaved… anymore…"

The chains began to glow, and Morte doubled over with a gasp, apparently in pain. When the chains stopped glowing, he straightened. "I speak nonsense. My duty is to send you to the cemetery I used to guard."

"It looks like we won't be able to talk our way out of this one," Lance said. "Who wants to duel him?"

"I will," Chasity said. "None of you have your Soul Monsters yet besides Courtney, who does not know Naomi's effect yet. When it comes to Shane, he has already dueled. I will finish what Petra started."

"Then let us begin," Morte said, activating his Duel Disk. Chasity followed suit.

Chasity: 8000

Morte: 8000

"You challenged us, so I'll go first," Chasity said.

"I do not mind," Morte replied.

"I lay one monster in defense mode. That is all," Chasity stated.

Morte ran his hand over the tops of his six cards. "Already I can bring out my devastating field. I discard Gravekeeper's Commander from my hand to my Cemetery. This activates his effect, allowing me to get The Sleeping Valley of the Pharaoh-Necrovalley from my deck. I play it!"

A thick fog blanketed the field, shrouding Morte and his Soul Monster. Chasity grimaced at the sight of it. "Necrovalley… a dangerous card to face. We can't access our Cemeteries, and all of your Gravekeepers have a stat increase of 500."

"I see you are aware of my deck's theme," Morte said. "To add to your troubles, I activate Magic Garder. It gives my Necrovalley a magic counter. If you attempt to destroy it, the counter will be destroyed instead."

"So I'll have to accept that the field will be Necrovalley for basically the entire duel," Chasity assumed.

Morte nodded. "Correct. Now I summon Gravekeeper Spearman. (2000/1500) He attacks your defense monster."

The Spearman pierced through her card, leaving Chasity to say, "My Amazoness Archer is gone." (1400/1000)

"When Gravekeeper Spearman destroys a monster in defense mode, you lose Life Points equal to the difference of the attack and your defense," Morte said. This was proven as the spear suddenly went farther through the card to stab Chasity. "That means you lose 1000 Life Points."

Chasity: 7000

Morte: 8000

"Not bad," Chasity said, rubbing her injured side. "But I can best that. Are you done?"

"Yes," Morte confirmed.

"I summon Amazoness Blowgunner. (800/1500) She is a weak attacker, which is exactly why I wanted her. I play a magic card, Amazoness Gypsy! The base strength of one of my Amazoness cards is switched with one of your monsters until the end of the turn. Of course I'll choose Amazoness Blowgunner and Gravekeeper Spearman. (1300/1500) (1500/1500) Amazoness Blowgunner attacks your Spearman!"

The Blowgunner nailed the Spearman with a dart, leaving him to vanish.

Chasity: 7000

Morte: 7800

"That's all for me," Chasity said. (800/1300)

"An Amazoness deck…" Shane said, looking interested. "I have never met anyone who uses that deck theme."

"Chasity really knows how to abuse them," Kurtis said ruefully. "She's shown me that when we dueled."

"Gravekeepers are dangerous though," Courtney said. "I won't rest easily until Chasity has won."

Morte proceeded with his turn. "I summon Gravekeeper Chanter. (1300/1300) When summoned, reverse summoned, or special summoned, my Chanter deals 500 Life Point damage to you. In addition, he attacks. I have nothing else to do."

Chasity: 6000

Morte: 7800

"Even if he is powered up by Necrovalley, that monster's stats are too low to stand up to most of my monsters," Chasity declared. "I summon Amazoness Marial Artist (1500/1300) and attack!" One solid punch took out the Chanter. "Your turn."

Chasity: 6000

Morte: 7600

"All I will do is place a monster in defense mode," Morte decided.

"I summon Amazoness Paladin," Chasity said. "She gains 100 attack points for each card with Amazoness in its name on my field. (1900/300) My Martial Artist attacks your defense monster!"

The Martial Artist's fist completely missed the monster. It sank into the shadows to avoid the blow and popped out afterwards.

"You have attacked my Gravekeeper Infiltrator. (1700/2500) When reverse summoned, I special summon a Gravekeeper from my deck with 1500 attack or less," Morte explained. "I special summon Gravekeeper Assassin." (2000/650)

"At least I won't lose Life Points from the attack," Chasity said. "As long as my Martial Artist is the one in battle, I do not take Life Point damage. I can do nothing else for the moment though."

"This move will be a severe one," Morte stated. "I summon Gravekeeper Gunner (1900/1700) and lay a card down. My Infiltrator will attack your Martial Artist, my Gunner will attack your Paladin, and my Assassin attacks directly!"

Both of her monsters were destroyed in an instant, one by knife and another by a huge blast. The Assassin leapt forward to slice into Chasity, leaving a long cut going down her chest.

Chasity: 3900

Morte: 7600

"Then I activate Gravekeeper Gunner's effect," Morte added. "By sacrificing a monster on my field, you lose 700 Life Points. I sacrifice my Infiltrator and Assassin for 1400 damage!"

Two rapid fires hit Chasity severely, nearly knocking her down. She managed to stand her ground though, and was soon able to face Morte again.

Chasity: 2500

Morte: 7600

"Chasity!" Lance exclaimed.

"O-oh n-no… is s-she all r-right?" Naomi said worriedly.

"Don't worry," Kurtis said. "Chasity's been in worse circumstances than this and has still managed to pull through."

"You may go," Morte concluded.

"I hope you're not about to give up," Petra remarked.

"As if!" Chasity said, drawing. "I summon another Amazoness Paladin! (1800/300) Then I equip her with Divine Blade-Phoenix Blade! This can only be equipped to a Warrior Sub-Type, and it increases the monster's attack by 300. (2100/300) I lay a card down and attack with Paladin!"

The Paladin's katana sliced through the fog and Gunner in one graceful cut, leaving Morte with no monsters.

Chasity: 2500

Morte: 7500

"Your move," Chasity said.

Morte did not seem particularly disturbed by what had happened. "I activate my trap card, Cry of the Living Dead. This will allow me to special summon Gravekeeper Assassin from my Cemetery."

"Wait a minute!" Kurtis protested. "I thought Necrovalley prevented both players from accessing the Cemetery!"

"There are two ways around that," Morte said. "One is to have a Gravekeeper Leader on your field. The other is through my Soul Monster's effect. Jefe, who is a Gravekeeper Leader himself, allows me to access both Cemeteries even with Necrovalley out. Gravekeeper Assassin attacks! Since Necrovalley is out, I can activate his effect. I choose one of your face-up monsters and it is forced to change modes. I switch your Paladin to defense mode!"

Thanks to the Paladin's weak defense, she was easily sliced apart by the Assassin. Satisfied at the results, Morte said, "That is all."

Chasity looked at her hand carefully. "I lay one monster in defense mode. There is little else I can do."

"Gravekeeper Assassin attacks it!" Morte said.

"You've hit my Amazoness Chain Wielder!" Chasity declared. (1500/1300) "Since she was sent from the field to the Cemetery, her effect goes off. By paying 1500 Life Points, I can choose a monster card from your hand to snag!"

Morte looked uneasy at that. "All I have is a Gravekeeper Leader. My other two cards are Terra Forming and Magic Garder."

The Chain Wielder's weapon came out of the ground to wrap around one of Morte's cards. It came next to Chasity, where she took it. "Apparently I will be taking your Gravekeeper Leader then."

Chasity: 1000

Morte: 7500

"I can do nothing more," Morte said.

Chasity made her next move swiftly. "I summon Amazoness Swordswoman (1500/1600) and lay a card down. Your turn."

"I will attack your monster with Assassin!" Morte said.

"You will, but not on the terms you were hoping for," Chasity stated. "I activate a trap card, Amazoness Phalanx! All of your monsters are forced to attack this turn, and have their attack reduced by 500." (1500/2000)

"In that case, I switch Swordswoman to defense to avoid having both die," Morte said, appearing slightly disturbed. "That is all." (2000/2000)

Chasity: 1000

Morte: 7400

Chasity smirked. "Your own monster will now turn against you. I sacrifice Amazoness Swordswoman for Gravekeeper Leader! (2400/1700) He attacks your Assassin!"

A blast of magic from the staff wiped out the Assassin instantly. Morte ran his fingers briefly across his Life Point counter and seemed reassured by what he felt.

Chasity: 1000

Morte: 7000

"I lay one card down and end," Chasity said.

"I place one card down-" Morte began.

"And I use Cyclone on it," Chasity cut in.

Morte sighed. "My Ritual of Spirits is gone. You may go."

Chasity looked at the card she had drawn and nodded. "Thanks to your Gravekeeper Leader, this game is over. I play Warrior's Return to get Amazoness Archer! Then I summon her!"

"What good will that do?" Morte asked.

"I never told you what Petra's Deck Master effect is," Chasity stated. "I think now would be a good time to do so. Once per duel, I can discard a monster card from my hand. One of my monsters on the field is powered up by 500 times the level of the discarded monster. I discard Cosmo Queen, an eight-star monster, to power Amazoness Archer up by 4000 points! (5200/1000) At the end of my turn, the powered-up monster dies, and I lose Life Points equal to half its attack, so this is a last-ditch move. Amazoness Archer and Gravekeeper Leader attack!"

Petra held up her katana, causing dark energy to come from the ground and surround it. The energy then leapt onto the Archer's arrow. Though the blast from the Leader hurt, the Archer did the most damage with her powered-up weapon.

Chasity: 1000

Morte: 0

"I failed…" Morte said, his breath coming out in ragged gasps. "But I have… few regrets. I died… and I should remain dead. Let me return… to where I can see…"

After saying that, he vanished. Jefe soon followed him, leaving nothing behind.

"That was odd," Leigh remarked. "It's almost like he didn't really want to go against us."

"From what I gathered, Morte felt cursed due to being blind," Lance said. "If he really could see in Hell, I guess he would have little bitterness left at the world. So why did he attack us?"

"Those chains…" Courtney murmured. "Maybe he's being… controlled…"

"It is a possibility," Shane agreed. "Which might mean we will be against some people who do not wish to fight." He glanced at Chasity. "Are you all right?"

"I've had worse," Chasity said with a shrug.

"That was great! You tossed those Gravekeepers back into the tomb they crawled out of!" Kurtis said enthusiastically.

"Three cheers for us, Team Awesome!" Jin said while somersaulting.

Leigh frowned. "Let's not get overconfident. We may not be so lucky next time."

"She is right," Chasity stated. "Two attacks in one day… I don't like this. It's too dangerous to remain here for the moment. Let's return to the real world and prepare for the next encounter. Morte called himself an Enslaved… maybe that is the group's name. It certainly seems grim."

"W-what can we d-do?" Naomi asked.

"Maybe we could reread some of the Teknisk Wereld books," Leigh suggested. "So we can be ready for who we find."

"I have a few ideas as well," Chasity added.

"Then we should meet up tomorrow," Shane said. "How about at the top of this mountain? We can continue where we left off."

"Won't it be hard to get back up the mountain?" Kurtis pointed out.

"It's been discovered that when a person concentrates on the area they want to arrive in, they get brought into Teknisk Wereld at that location," Chasity said. "Of course, this only really works when you have been to the area before. We should be able to arrive here without much of a problem."

"Then yeah, let's meet here," Leigh said. She smiled at Shane. "Thanks again for all of your help."

"I'm happy to be of assistance," Shane replied. "See you all tomorrow!"

"Bye!" Jin said, waving as he and Shane vanished.

"Let's follow their lead," Courtney said. They proceeded to exit Teknisk Wereld too.

To be continued…


	5. A Friend in Need

Teknisk Wereld finally gets a much-deserved update.

**Chapter Five: A Friend In Need**

The return to the real world was as swift as usual. They were soon sitting up and removing their equipment.

"So what's the plan?" Lance said.

"How about the two of us look into Mom's books?" Leigh suggested. "Kurtis lacks the attention span-"

"HEY!"

Leigh rolled her eyes. "It's true and you know it. As for Courtney, I think she has to leave soon."

"Oh, right, gym practice," Courtney recalled. "I have to get going or I'll be late."

"Gym practice?" Naomi said curiously.

"It's easier to show than explain. Want to come?" Courtney said.

Naomi nodded quickly. "Please!"

"I have a few things in mind to take care of," Chasity stated. "Go ahead and look at those books. Kurtis, don't trash the house."

"For your information, I have a new model to put together," Kurtis said with an annoyed look. He went off towards his room. Chasity shook her head before leaving as well.

"See you later," Courtney said. She and Naomi exited, which left Leigh and Lance to head to the books.

…

When Courtney and Naomi finally left the gym and started walking home, Naomi's eyes were wide. "W-wow! That was incredible! You're amazing!"

Courtney was clearly amused by her awe. "Thanks." She looked somewhat grim as she added, "Though that's part of the problem."

"Problem?" Naomi said, tilting her head.

"My mom wants me to be a good gymnast because that's what she is," Courtney explained. "I have nothing against it, but… that's not the career I want to pursue. I'm not the same as her. She drives me to train really hard very frequently when I'd rather have it as a recreation of sorts. My dedication isn't high enough, and I'd like to have more time to myself rather than have it all taken up by gym."

"If you feel that way… why not tell her?" Naomi asked.

"It's her passion! I'd offend her if I said I just wanted to do it for fun," Courtney said. "I can't bring myself to."

"But if you don't… you'll be miserable…" Naomi said. "So… I think you should. I'm sure she'll understand…"

Courtney was silent in response to that for a long moment. She finally responded when they were nearly home. "Okay. When she gets back from the hospital, I'll tell her."

"Hospital?" Naomi said.

Courtney spent the rest of the trip explaining what had happened to Brandi. Naomi was quite sympathetic about it, though she also seemed slightly nervous when Courtney mentioned she would be returning tomorrow.

"Yeah, Lilian-she's my aunt-is going to be bringing her," Courtney said as she unlocked the door. "Don't worry, Mom's nice. You'll like her."

"I h-hope so…" Naomi said, timidly following her in.

"I'm going to drop my stuff off in my room. Be right back." Courtney left Naomi in the hallway.

Interested in seeing what was to be her home, Naomi looked around the entryway before heading into the living room.

To her surprise, there was someone else there. She wore a white t-shirt, maroon shorts, and light blue slippers. Her blonde hair was back in a ponytail, with black headphones over her head that were attached to a CD player. When Naomi entered, her blue eyes flashed open to stare at her.

"Um… h-hello?" Naomi said.

The girl wrenched off her headphones in response and threw her arms around Naomi, who squeaked in shock. "HOW CUTE!"

"Mana!" Courtney said, coming into the room with an annoyed look. "That's my Soul Monster, not a pet!"

"I bet you did the same thing when you first saw her!" Mana retorted, thankfully letting go of Naomi, who was blushing fiercely.

"Well… so what if I did?" Courtney retorted.

Once Naomi got over her surprise, she said, "M-Mana is y-your name?"

"Yep! So you're Courtney's Soul Monster? I'm so happy she got a darling one!" Mana said cheerfully. "I'm Brandi's Soul Monster."

"B-Brandi's? I-I thought y-you were a human!" Naomi said, blinking.

"I can use my magic to change my clothing!" Mana explained. "It's a lot more comfortable wearing this than my armor."

"Her name is Naomi, and she's _shy_," Courtney said pointedly.

"Oh all right, I'll be less noisy around her," Mana said, throwing her hands in the air. "So how have things been going in Teknisk Wereld? Tell me about it!"

Courtney considered her words carefully before beginning to speak of what had happened. As she did, she specifically left out seeing Diablos and Morte, focusing instead on the duels they had yesterday and the coliseum fights they saw.

…

"This has been informative, but nothing really jumped out to me," Leigh said as she set aside the book she had been skimming through. "Anything you've found?"

"Mavericks and more Mavericks. Hopefully these Enslaved will just be Generals of Hell; most of them sound easier to deal with," Lance said, turning a page.

Leigh sighed. "I think we've done all we can. Let's put these up before Mom and Dad come home and ask what we were up to."

"Yeah. No need to tell them about this yet," Lance said, helping her collect the books to put them away.

Once they were done, they went to Kurtis' room to see what he was up to. The model stood on his desk, completed, while he sat on his floor and turned the box set of Rozen Maiden over in his hands doubtfully.

"Debating about whether to watch it?" Lance said, causing him to look up.

"Yeah. I know you said it's good, but…" Kurtis shook his head. "How about you guys watch it with me?"

"That sounds fair enough," Leigh said. "We've got nothing better to do now."

"Why would I refuse to watch an excellent anime? Let's get to it!" Lance said.

…

Shadows stretched across the room, leaving the two people present in their shrouds. One knelt in front of the other, who was currently seething.

"Both of them failed? I should never have relied on those two idiots!" the woman's voice snapped.

"Mistress, they were tipped off by Diablos and more prepared to deal with Morte," the kneeling man stated. "I suspect they will be ready to combat others by tomorrow. It is unfortunate that that man interfered, or Diablos may have been successful in killing at least a few of them."

"What man? You did not mention this earlier," the woman said.

"One who called himself Ace. He was not specifically part of the group, but his actions were in their favor. He was responsible for destroying Diablos after he lost against that boy, Shane," the man said.

"Tell me, what did he look like?" the woman inquired.

"Black clothing, used bladed cards, had black hair, and his face was difficult to see due to his hat," the man replied. "Though I did manage to catch sight of his eyes. They were red."

The woman appeared startled at that, and then laughed. "Him! I had my suspicions when I heard that name, but never did I think…" She trailed off. "You have done well and may leave now."

"Yes, Mistress." The man got up and left.

"You! Get in here!" she snapped once he was gone.

"What do you want from me?" a cold voice responded as another man came in.

"I have a job for you and another of the Enslaved…" she began.

…

It was early morning when Ace made it to the top of the mountain. The hike had tired him slightly, but he was still well enough to go on shortly. He took a moment to look over the side with no success.

"Not a sign of them…" Ace muttered as he went towards the other side. "Maybe they aren't here yet, or aren't coming back. Ah well. It's better that we don't meet again anyway. I don't even know why I was worried about them."

He suddenly turned, looking where he had just been standing. Nothing had changed. "Odd," he muttered, looking forward again. "I thought I heard…"

A whistle cut through the air as clear wires wrapped around his arms and legs. He fell at once, and before he could react, someone gagged him with a white cloth.

"That was close! He almost noticed us," he heard a male voice say. "Still, you did the job well."

"I don't need your worthless praise," another man replied icily. "Let's get back before she gets impatient."

"Hmph. As you say," the first responded, lifting Ace and slinging him over his shoulder. His hat fell to the ground, but neither seemed to notice as they walked away with him in tow.

…

A knock at the door caused Leigh to bolt from the table to get it. Standing there was Courtney and Naomi, the latter hiding behind the former.

"Good morning! Just give us a moment to finish breakfast and we'll be set," Leigh said, leading the two of them inside.

They came to the table in time to hear Max saying, "Katrina was telling me when I got there that she should have made me take more time off. I said I didn't need time off at all, but she responded with, 'When your wife has to call me and beg for you to stop work that I was not even forcing you to do, and then Larka and Zack have to hold you down while I ban you for two weeks, you need a vacation.' Still, when I got to my desk, I saw a mountain of paperwork and said to myself, 'This is why I didn't want to take time off…' Summary of my first day back: lots of catching up to do."

"She is right though. You do work far too much," Hope told him.

"So says you, who gets rich off book incomes." He ducked a playful swipe Hope attempted with a spoon.

"We'll leave you two to that and get going," Chasity said, putting up her plate and leaving the room. Leigh, Kurtis, and Lance swiftly followed her lead.

"Did you find anything yesterday?" Courtney asked.

"Not much," Leigh admitted. "We looked through the books and then took the rest of the evening off to watch that new anime Kurtis got."

"Did you like it?" Courtney asked.

"Let's put it this way; Kurtis asked if we could skip going to Teknisk Wereld today to finish it," Lance said with a laugh.

"Hey, it's awesome!" Kurtis said.

"No argument there, but we should hurry. Shane's probably waiting for us," Leigh pointed out.

"Ah, right," Kurtis said sheepishly.

When they got to the living room, they noticed a small, brown pack on the couch that Chasity picked up. "What's in there?" Courtney asked.

"Nothing you need to worry about now." Chasity attached her Envoyant Machine and Duel Disk. "Let's go. Be sure to concentrate on the mountaintop."

They obeyed her instructions, pressing the buttons on their Envoyant Machines and falling unconscious.

…

As Leigh had guessed, Shane was already there. He got up from the rock he had been seated on and said, "Good morning."

"Same to you," Leigh replied.

Kurtis looked around. "Where's Jin?"

"When we arrived here, we found something odd," Shane said, frowning slightly. He brought out the black hat to show them. "It looks very similar to the one Ace wore."

"Ace? That man who finished off Diablos?" Courtney said.

"Yeah. Jin's looking now to see if he's nearby," Shane explained.

As if on cue, Jin flew over to them. "We've got trouble! I saw two weirdos near the bottom of the mountain, and when I looked closer, I noticed one of them was carrying Ace!"

"What? Carrying him?" Lance said.

"I think they captured him or something, because he sure didn't look happy to be with them!" Jin said. "So what are we waiting for? Let's go save him!"

"Hold it!" Chasity said. "Why should we? We have no guarantee that he's on our side!"

"He saved us," Shane stated. "I wish to return the favor, thus I will go, even if none of you want to."

"Don't worry, we'll help too!" Lance said. Leigh, Kurtis, and Courtney were quick to agree.

Chasity sighed. "Fine. Let's just get this over with!"

"They should be at the plains by now," Jin said. "I can get us down there!"

"You can?" Kurtis asked.

"I can manipulate the wind to lower us down gently," Jin said. "It's really hard to do for a large amount of people, but I can still do it! Lifting, on the other hand, is nearly impossible."

"You're saying we should jump off the mountain and be lowered by the wind you control?" Courtney said.

"That's right! Trust me, it works great!" Jin said.

"No thanks! I don't know about everyone else, but I would prefer to continue living!" Kurtis exclaimed.

"Congratulations, you're our first volunteer!" Jin smacked him in the back, sending him flying off the mountain with a yell. "Okay guys, jump off fast, or I won't be able to help you all descend!"

"You're unbelievable!" Leigh said before she went over the edge. Courtney, Lance, and Shane jumped as well. Chasity and Petra hesitated briefly but soon did the same.

As Jin had guaranteed, the wind he controlled swiftly caught them and brought them down at a reasonable speed. As they got closer to the ground, they saw three figures. They soon landed a reasonable distance away from them.

"Suppose there's no getting around it," Chasity said flatly. She reached into her pack and pulled out a sai. Its blade gleamed in the sunlight and instantly caught the attention of her companions.

"You brought a weapon into Teknisk Wereld?" Kurtis said in disbelief, his anger at Jin's move gone.

"They won't be playing by the rules, so neither will we." Chasity tested the edge with her finger. "Still in working order."

Petra also drew her weapon while Jin prepared to fight. Naomi murmured something while hiding behind Courtney that roughly sounded like, "I d-don't want to fight…"

"That's okay. You won't have to," Courtney said.

"Geez, a Soul Monster that doesn't like to fight," Petra said, shaking her head. "Now I've seen everything."

"Don't mind her," Courtney said to a miserable Naomi. "She's like that to everyone."

They only had to wait for a moment before the people emerged. One was indeed carrying Ace. He wore a black cloak of a General of Hell, along with the usual orb and the chains of an Enslaved. Along with that, he had short brown hair and green eyes. A brown furball with three green eyes ran next to him, recognizable as a Critter Soul Monster.

The other man was far more threatening. He wore a black cloak, ragged at the bottom, that concealed all of his body except for his face, with the front fastened by a silver dagger clasp. His black hair concealed his face at first, but then he looked towards them, revealing pale skin and sickening red eyes. There were chains on him as well. Beside him was his Soul Monster, a horrifying one. It was a brown skeleton-like creature that wore a blue and gold joker's outfit, with a matching hat and bells dangling from the two points it had. Wrapped around its claw-like fingers were red strings that glowed with deadly energy, and its red eyes were blank.

The four of them stopped short, appearing surprised. Ace's eyes were now visible due to losing his hat; they were red, and currently wide in disbelief.

"Them! Already?" the one carrying Ace said. "How did they get here so fast?"

"It doesn't matter," Shane said. "Release him! We will take measures to stop you otherwise."

"I find myself inclined to agree on one point. What does it matter?" The other man put his hand to his shoulder and flung it out, creating a crimson wave. A scythe appeared, with a black handle and a red blade. "They would have died either way. Bring him back to her while I deal with them."

"Gladly!" The man started to run away.

"Wait!" Leigh exclaimed.

"Oh no you don't!" Jin darted through the air towards him, but was forced to jump back to avoid being sliced in half by the scythe. By that time, the other man was a good distance away.

"We can't let him escape!" Lance said. Then he paused. "Huh?" He reached into his pocket and pulled out his Soul Card. "It's warm… that must mean…" His voice grew more firm as he said, "Take flight, child of fire! Bring us a blaze of triumph!"

A small figure popped out of the card. The monster was an orange dragon with a light pink stomach that was about the size of a stuffed animal. He had small wings, two black horns that matched his claws, and blue eyes. He looked around, and then waved to Lance. "Yo! Nice to meet you! I'm Dennis. What do you need me to do?"

"A Baby Dragon," Lance said, eye twitching as the trio of teenagers snickered. "My Soul Monster is a FREAKING BABY DRAGON?"

"Hey! Do you have a problem with that?" Dennis said, flying in front of him and shaking his claw at his face. "I may be small but I pack a punch! Just order me to attack and I will! Come on, do it! I dare ya!"

"Okay then." Lance grabbed him by the tail and started swinging him in a circle.

"AH! What are you doing!" he cried.

"Getting you ready to attack! Go Dennis!" Lance flung him forward, sending him flying with a yell. He crashed into the fleeing man, knocking him and Ace to the ground.

"Nice! Dragon projectile for the win!" Jin said, swiftly ducking underneath another scythe sweep and flying by the attacker. He grabbed Dennis in one hand and managed to get a grip on Ace with his other, and then put distance between them and the other man before he could stand up.

Shane was quick to run over to them with the rest of the group following. He reached into the small pouch Ace had at his side and drew out a playing card. "Sorry, I'm going to need to borrow this a moment!" He cut through the wires binding him. "Are you all right?"

Ace pulled the gag from his mouth out before rubbing his arm. "Yeah, thanks to you guys. I certainly didn't expect you to come along!"

"You helped us, so we wanted to do the same," Leigh said.

"Most of us did, anyway," Kurtis said, rolling his eyes.

"That was not necessary," Chasity snapped, not looking back. She held her sai up as the man with the scythe approached.

"Good going, Dark Scythe! There's little chance of getting him back now!" the other man complained.

"Quit your whining. Go ahead and leave. I'll do better without you holding me down," Dark said, spinning his scythe.

"Fine!" He pointed at the group. "My name is Segretto, and you haven't seen the last of me!" His eyes narrowed on Shane. "Especially you! Your actions and words… they have you marked for me to deal with!" He ran away with the Critter following.

"You dare stand up to me?" Dark said, approaching.

"Wouldn't be much fun if we backed down!" Jin said.

"Not that I care either way. Your fates were sealed the moment you showed up here." He swung his scythe at Chasity. Her sai managed to block the blade, but it was clear that she could barely manage to hold it back. It seemed that he would triumph when he suddenly gasped and stumbled back, his side bleeding.

"I've been waiting for the chance to do that!" Ace said, drawing out another card.

Furious at his master being wounded, Dark's Soul Monster brought up its fingers to throw wires at Chasity and Ace. A fierce gust from Jin knocked them away though. Dennis, now recovered from having been thrown, spat a fireball at the puppeteer. He desperately backed away while trying to put out the flames on his clothes.

"You're outnumbered," Shane stated. "Will you persist in battling us?"

"Battling won't get you anywhere anyway," Lance said.

Dark hissed in annoyance. "Of course not… as Master Juno told me, you use those infuriating cards to fight." He activated his Duel Disk. "Fine then! See if you can face me!"

"Well, I brought it up, so I guess I'll go." Lance stepped forward. "Ready, Dennis?"

"You tossed me at that random guy and had me breathe fire at a creepy clown and you ask if I'm READY? HELL YEAH! Let's do this!" Dennis said.

"Are you sure about this?" Ace said. "You got into this mess because of me. I could face him instead."

"I already said I would, so it's not a problem. Thanks though," Lance said.

"You can help by cheering him on," Leigh said. "That's what all of us will be doing."

Ace smiled. "Never had a chance to do it before, so sure, why not?"

Chasity eyed him warily, but said nothing. She kept her sai in hand as she watched the duelists draw their opening hands.

Lance: 8000

Dark: 8000

"You got the first attack, so it's only fair I get the first turn," Lance said. "I summon Sapphire Dragon (1900/1600) and lay a card down."

"I lay two cards. Go," Dark said shortly.

"Hope you have something to stop this, or you're in for a world of hurt!" Lance threatened. "I summon Spear Dragon (1900/0) and attack with both of them!"

"I do have something to stop you," Dark stated. "I activate Scape Goat for four Goat Tokens." (0/0)

"That's annoying, but I can deal with it," Lance said. "Spear Dragon attacks the red one! Sapphire attacks another."

Dark looked undisturbed at this, until his Life Point counter began to drop. "How did you hurt me?"

"Spear Dragon does damage even when your monster's in defense mode," Lance explained. "I'm done."

Lance: 8000

Dark: 6100

"No matter," Dark said. "I will sacrifice your Sapphire and Spear Dragons for Lava Golem!" (3000/2500)

"Not that!" Lance groaned before he was trapped in the Lava Golem's cage.

"Feel the heat," Dennis joked, not looking disturbed by the turn of events.

"I switch one of my Goat Tokens to attack mode and attack Lava Golem!" Dark announced.

"That's suicide!" Lance exclaimed, but the cute goat still attacked, and was burned to a crisp.

Lance: 8000

Dark: 3100

Dark smirked. "It is, but it allows me to activate my instant magic card, Hell Tempest! When I take 3000 or more damage, I can activate it. All monsters in both our decks and Cemeteries are removed from the game!"

"Ugh! I knew there had to be a catch somewhere!" Lance said as he pulled cards out of his deck.

"That is the card my deck is based around," Dark said. "I lay two cards down and end."

The Lava Golem's cage flared, burning Lance. He winced but did not seem too distracted.

Lance: 7000

Dark: 3100

"At least I can get rid of your Lava Golem," Lance declared. "I sacrifice it for Death Vorstagalf! (2200/1700) Then I play Stomping Crash! This destroys a magic or trap card on your field and deals 500 damage to you! I choose the one to your left!"

"My Imperial Control is gone…"

Lance: 7000

Dark: 2600

"Death Vorstagalf will attack your last Goat Token!" Once the goat was torn through, Dark's Life Point counter decreased again. "When Death Vorstagalf destroys one of your monsters, you lose 500 Life Points."

Lance: 7000

Dark: 2100

"My Life Points may be low, but I can win this in one turn!" Dark said. "I activate Return from the Twilight Zone!"

"That card… you pay half your Life Points to special summon as many monsters you have removed from the game as possible, right?" Leigh said.

"Kankarou negates the cost I have to pay to special summon, but otherwise, yes," Dark said. "I special summon three Red Lotus Beast, Da Iizas, and two Raremetal Dragons! (?/?) (2400/1200) Iiza's stats are determined by how many cards are in my removed pile. It is 400 times the amount. (4400/4400) They all attack you!"

"I won't lose that easily! I activate Menacing Roar to prevent you from attacking this turn!"

"No… that means…" Dark trailed off.

"That's right. I've won! Death Vorstagalf attacks!"

Dark yelled out as the dragon tore into him viciously.

Lance: 7000

Dark: 0

"Lord Juno… why don't I remember anything…?" Dark whispered before turning into dust.

"He didn't remember anything? How can that be? Diablos and Morte seemed to know everything," Leigh said.

Shane thought over that. "We know the Mavericks were very different from anyone here. What if Juno was able to take the real Dark Scythe, and this one was a shell? A memory of who he was?"

"That could be it," Courtney agreed.

"Way to go, um, random person," Dennis said to Lance. "Who are you?"

Lance slapped his forehead. "My name is Lance. Glad to have you around and all that."

"You really beat him down!" Kurtis said. "Made it look totally easy!"

"You did," Ace said. "And I owe you for that. Nah, I owe all of you for it. You all saved me. But I had better get going."

"What? Why?" Leigh asked.

"So I don't get you guys wrapped up in my troubles anymore!" Ace exclaimed. "Apparently someone's after me, and if that's the case, I don't want them hurting you all!"

"But if you're left alone, you'll be caught again! They already overpowered you once, they can do it again!" Shane said. "You should come with us. We could use the help, and so could you!"

"It's a nice idea, but I know some people are against the idea of me being here," Ace said, looking pointedly at Chasity.

Chasity looked annoyed, but said, "I'm actually okay with you coming if you want to."

Ace blinked. "Really?"

"Yes. I still don't trust you completely, but the fact that you were attacked shows me you're not on their side," Chasity stated. "So… you can come."

"We're all okay with it," Leigh said, and Kurtis, Courtney, and Lance nodded. "So let's go together."

"Yes. Together," Shane said, holding out Ace's hat.

Ace looked stunned, and then smiled. "Why not?" He accepted his hat. "I'll throw my chips in with you, and I expect to be fully paid back for it!"

To be continued…


	6. Flip of a Coin

Okay, three months later, I finally have an update! Thanks to Habado for inspiring me. I apologize for the delay. A lot of flipping annoying things were going on.

**Chapter Six: Flip of a Coin**

It was when Max was walking towards his boss' office that he ran into Captain Lapis Roman. As usual, her official uniform was pristine, while her dark brown hair was done back in two braids, leaving her stern brown eyes uncovered.

"Captain Roman, good morning," Max said. "Did Katrina call you too?"

Lapis nodded. "She said something vital had come up." They continued to walk as she inquired, "How was your vacation?"

"It went well, thanks. I enjoyed having time to spend with Hope, though I felt guilty for not working," Max stated.

"Everyone needs a break sometime." Lapis stopped in front of the door and knocked.

A response came instantly. "Come in!"

Max and Lapis entered to see two people in the tidy office. The one who had called them was a young woman who wore a light purple dress and had a silver cross around her neck. Her dark brown hair fell to her back, and her light blue eyes held a trace of excitement that Max had rarely seen for her. The other person, a man who looked to be in his seventies, wore a dark green suit and leaned on a brown cane. He had a gray beard with short gray hair, and his eyes, which matched his granddaughter's, were behind wire glasses.

"Thank you for coming so quickly," the woman said, typing at her computer while speaking. A luxurious cat bed was next to it on her desk, and a black cat with gold jewelry purred in it, a smug look on its face.

"It was no problem," Lapis assured. "You seem well today, Katrina. As does Bast." She nodded towards the cat.

"Only fair that my Soul Monster shares my happiness, right?" Katrina said. "I have told you both about a project that I started many years ago with my grandfather. It took fifteen years, but at long last, it is done."

"What is this project anyway?" Max asked.

"We thought it should be a surprise," Sarov explained, eyes twinkling.

"Unfortunately, we are not sure where our project has gone," Katrina added. "So keep an eye out, will you? We're sure you'll realize what it is when you see it."

"Um, sure. Whatever you say," Max said, shrugging.

"As you wish," Lapis replied.

"That's all I wanted. Go ahead and return to your duties," Katrina said lightly.

"Okay. See you later," Max answered before leaving. Lapis followed him out, and listened to him as he said to her, "What was that about?"

Lapis considered, but could only say, "I have a feeling we will find out soon."

…

Though Chasity had agreed to Ace joining their group, she retained her stubbornness on other matters. This was shown when Kurtis asked to continue exploring Teknisk Wereld, which he did right after the introductions with Ace were done.

"Absolutely not," Chasity said firmly. "Diablos and Morte were bad enough, but Dark Scythe means that Mavericks may have returned, which is even worse." To the children's surprise, they thought they saw a shiver pass over her, but it was gone too quickly to tell. "That, and Segretto has gotten away. They will know where to find us now."

"Not if we move to a different area!" Kurtis argued. "Come on, Chasity! This is only our third day in Teknisk Wereld! I'm not about to let these freaks ruin my time here!"

"I agree with my brother," Leigh interjected. "Most of us haven't even gotten to see our Soul Monsters yet. Please, Chasity, let us stay a little longer."

Chasity frowned, appearing somewhat swayed but still troubled. "I promised your parents I would look after you, and the best way to do that would be to leave."

"For how long? I doubt these people will simply go away if we try to ignore them," Ace pointed out.

Chasity glared at him. "I didn't ask your opinion."

Ace bowed slightly. "My apologies, Miss."

"My name is Chasity," she snapped, bristling. "And I expect for you to call me that."

"Sorry. Old habits die hard," Ace replied.

"I agree with the top hat guy," Dennis said. "We have to defend ourselves, or even better, bring the fight to them!"

"Yeah!" Jin punched the air. "Let them try to take us down! We're Team Awesome!"

"Team Overconfident is more like it," Courtney said. "The Enslaved so far have been really dangerous. We can't take them lightly."

"We must consider that we are safer battling them in Teknisk Wereld," Shane stated. "If we stopped coming here, they might be able to find us in real life. They might attack our loved ones simply to get at us."

The group went silent at that horrible thought. Chasity then said, "I see your point. All right, we'll continue. Shane and Mr. Shifty over there can stay as long as they want, but the four of you are to agree to log out if I ever come to the conclusion that we must. Agreed?"

"Mr. Shifty?" Ace muttered.

"I think that's fair," Leigh agreed. "Right, Kurtis?"

Kurtis shrugged. "I guess."

"Where should we go then?" Petra asked. "Everywhere is equally dangerous at the moment, but it's better than staying here."

"I want to go to an area Mom hasn't written about," Kurtis said. "Is there one of those close by?"

"The desert is a new location in that aspect, I believe," Shane stated.

"Aw, we're going there? I can't stir up a nice wind without causing a sandstorm!" Jin complained.

"Speak for yourself, wind boy. Deserts are hot, something I much prefer," Dennis said as he hovered around Lance's head.

"Quit that!" Lance yanked Dennis out of his face. "Is the desert nearby?"

"It's just beyond these plains," Ace answered. "We can make it there pretty quickly."

"I haven't been there very often myself," Chasity said. "Want to lead the way, Shane?"

"Sure." Shane started off, with the group following him.

The plains stretched on with little in the way of changes. Occasionally a wild monster would pass, such as a rabbit creature with elongated teeth and an eyepatch, or an orange hamster that would run into a hole at their approach. The newcomers stared at them in awe while Chasity, Shane, and Ace barely regarded them.

"I can understand why it is interesting though," Shane said. "I was like that the first time I came here."

"I can't even remember what my first visit was like when it came to monsters," Ace commented. "I was busy with other things at the time."

"Like what?" Chasity said suspiciously.

"Nothing you need to worry about," Ace replied.

Chasity's response was cut off by Kurtis saying, "I think I see it!"

The land ahead had transformed from grasslands to sand. It made traversing difficult, with it constantly causing their feet to sink in deeply. Cacti and wild monsters such as snake-like creatures were the only breaks from the monotony. The sun beat down on them harshly, resulting in most of them sweating in under ten minutes. Only Dennis enjoyed it; he swooped through the air and playfully dived at the sand. "This place is awesome!"

Jin panted as he said, "Speak for yourself." A small breeze whipped past him in a vain attempt to cool himself.

"How can you stand wearing all of those black clothes?" Kurtis managed to wheeze, looking at Ace.

"Well, there's a reason I never go to this area. And that would be why." Ace removed his hat to wipe his brow before replacing it.

"Can't you at least remove your glove?" Kurtis directed to Shane. "You two are making me even more hot just by what you're wearing!"

"Huh? My glove?" Shane glanced at it. "Oh, right. It's not that bad, really."

"How can you say that? It's tight-fitting and black!" Kurtis protested.

"And it looks cool!" Jin broke in. "It adds precious cool points to Shane's look, which is already awesome because of his ridiculously long hair. So he cannot discard it, ever!"

"Yeah, Kurtis did have an opinion on his hair," Leigh said mischievously.

Kurtis glared at her. "Hey! No telling them!"

Shane laughed, appearing relieved that the subject had changed. "I don't mind. You can tell me."

"You don't want to hear it, really," Kurtis told him.

Lance stayed out of the conversation by asking Courtney, "How are you holding up? I know you hate extreme temperatures."

Courtney smiled. "Don't worry, I'm dressed lightly, so I'm fine."

"That's good. Just tell me if you aren't, okay?" Lance returned to the main group.

Flying low by Courtney, Naomi said to her, "Are they a-always like this?"

"Like what?" Courtney asked,.

"So... talkative." Naomi blushed as she said that.

"It's generally how most people are," Courtney said. "Don't worry though. That doesn't mean you have to join in on the conversation. It's good to listen too."

Jin cut her off. "And to not interrupt! Like I just did!"

"Shane, you should teach him some matters," Courtney said, rolling her eyes.

"Believe me, I've tried," Shane said. "Unfortunately-"

His words were cut off when the sand beneath the group suddenly collapsed. With surprised cries, they went plunging down, almost instantly being submerged to their waists.

"I should have seen this coming," Chasity groaned.

"Everyone, try not to struggle! We'll only sink faster that way!" Shane said.

"Easy for you to say!" Kurtis complained as he feebly tried to keep his arms above the sand.

"Don't worry Lance, I'll save you!" Dennis called before diving down from the air and grabbing onto his shirt collar.

"Thanks, but that's not really helping," Lance pointed out.

Courtney was having the worst time, being near the center of the sand trap. Naomi managed to get a firm grip under her arms and keep her lifted though. Jin did the same with Shane. At seeing this, Leigh felt a pang in her heart. _Even though we're in danger, my Soul Monster still isn't emerging. Why…?_

"Anyone have any bright ideas?" Kurtis said.

"Yeah, if I could just… find it…" Ace pulled out a card. "There it is!" He inserted it into his Duel Disk.

Instantly, a wave of ice covered the sand. Though they were still trapped, the sand did not pull them down anymore, being frozen. Ace then brought out his playing cards, which gleamed in the sunlight. "A temporary fix, but Deep Freeze should keep us all from dying for the moment. I'll pull myself out and try to help the rest of you."

"How do you plan on doing that?" Lance asked.

Ace responded by slamming his cards into the ice. They broke through it, and Ace slowly pulled himself forward while using them as handholds. He was clearly struggling to get there, but at last, he managed to emerge completely from the sand.

"Wow, those cards must be really strong," Leigh remarked, getting over her thoughts for a moment.

"Sure are. Let's see if we can take care of you guys now. Oh, but first…" Ace stepped from the ice onto the sand. "Maybe our assailant would be kind enough to show himself?"

After a moment of silence, a man stepped out from behind a particularly large cactus. He wore black shoulder armor with matching fingerless gloves, brown boots, and silver armor pieces over each of his elbows. His red short-sleeved shirt had a high collar, which went with dark blue pants. His dark brown hair was cut short, and his pale green eyes appeared surprised. The chains that all Enslaved wore weighed down on him. At his side was a blue beetle that stood on two legs, with the other two grasping a javelin. Its small, red eyes stared ahead blankly.

"I am amazed you escaped my Quicksand," the man said. "But it doesn't matter. Once I eliminate you, your friends will perish as well."

"Who are you supposed to be?" Ace said, seeming unimpressed.

"I am Scrab," he stated. "Someone who died and went to Hell, no thanks to these whelps' parents. I will take my revenge out on them, and on their friends!"

"So much for a good explanation." Ace drew out what everyone recognized to be a Soul Card. "How do you want to do this? Duel or fight?"

"Duel, I suppose. I have more confidence in my deck than my Soul Monster, Spear. He has been out of sorts, as you might be able to tell." Scrab readied his Duel Disk.

From Ace's Soul Card appeared a man wearing black and gold armor, which included large shoulder guards and a helmet. He wielded a huge sword effortlessly in one hand, with a silver shield covering his other arm. His purple hair went to his shoulders, and his eyes were black.

"What monster is that?" Leigh asked, awed by his regal appearance.

The Soul Monster turned to them and gave a bow. "Greetings. I am Arcadia, an Arcana Joker Knight. I will do all I can to assist you."

"Never heard of that one before," Courtney said. Naomi fluttered behind her nervously.

"Me either, but he looks cool, and he carries a sword! That makes him good in my book!" Jin said.

"Let's not waste any more time then," Ace said as his own Duel Disk unfolded. "We have better things to do than mess with you."

Ace: 8000

Scrab: 8000

"I wonder what kind of deck he uses," Kurtis remarked. "Whatever it is, I hope it wins quickly, so we can get out of here! This is really uncomfortable!"

"Who cares what deck he has?" Chasity muttered. Her eyes remained focused on the duelists though.

"Scrab's an Insect user, if I recall correctly," Shane said. "He specialized in using Parasite and Insect Barrier as a combo."

Ace caught his words. "Interesting information. I'll keep it in mind." He brought out a quarter. "Let's decide who goes first. Call heads or tails."

"Bah, I hate things based on luck. Heads," Scrab said, frowning.

"Then you and I won't get along well. This quarter and I have been through many a gamble." Ace flipped it, and then let it fall onto the back of his hand, trapping it with his other hand. The odd maneuver stood out to them as he looked at the result. "Tails. I'm up first."

"And that's why I hate them," Scrab grumbled.

Ace ignored him. "I'll start by summoning Queens Knight (1500/1600) and laying a card down. Your turn."

"Your weak creature stands no chance against me," Scrab sneered. "I summon Valuable Armor!" (2350/1000)

"A little strong for a level four or lower, isn't it?" Ace remarked.

"Spear's effect allows me to summon any Insect I wish that would normally require sacrifices!" Scrab said triumphantly. "Valuable Armor attacks!"

"Hey, I'm not about to let you get me that easily." Ace flipped over his card. "I activate Traveler's Riddle!"

"What's that supposed to do?" Scrab asked.

"It's a permanent trap card," Ace explained. "Whenever you declare an attack, you have to choose a card from my hand and call monster, magic, or trap. If you get it right, your attack goes through. Otherwise, the monster you were attacking with is sent back to your hand. Care to try your luck?"

Scrab's eyebrow twitched. "Fine. You have four cards? The one farthest to the left is a magic."

"Afraid not." Ace showed it to him. "It's a monster, Kings Knight. Visit again soon, Armor."

"Believe me, he will," Scrab snapped as he removed his monster from the field. "I have to end."

"Already? Fine by me. I'll summon Kings Knight, (1600/1400) and his effect activates! When I summon him and Queens Knight is on the field, I can special summon Jacks Knight (1900/1400) from my deck!" After giving his deck a quick shuffle, Ace said, "All three will attack you directly!"

Three swipes were heard, along with a sharp cry. Scrab placed a hand over his wounds, hissing.

Ace: 8000

Scrab: 3000

"Talk about an early lead," Lance said, blinking.

"And a total ass kicking!" Dennis cheered.

"So what, his deck is based around these knight things? I guess I should have seen that coming, since he hurls playing cards," Kurtis said.

"I think there is more to it than that," Shane said, watching with interest.

"You haven't won yet!" Scrab exclaimed. "I summon Valuable Armor again! And to get around your infuriating trap, I simply won't attack. I lay down a card and end my turn."

"The cautious type, eh? Those ones aren't any fun." Ace grinned. "So I'll keep having fun while you wait. I switch Queens Knight to defense mode, and then play a magic card, Guessing Game!"

"What does that do?" Scrab said warily.

"You call a level of a monster, and I draw until I come to a monster I can normal summon," Ace stated. "If it's the level you called, I discard the monster. If it isn't, I special summon it. Either way, I lose all the cards I drew until that point."

"This is easy enough," Scrab said, looking relieved. "Four."

"The usual choice." Ace began to draw. "Reverse Dice discarded, Needle Wall discarded, and I get Queens Knight. Ah well. I'll lay a monster down to finish things up."

Scrab drew and then stared before shrieking, "Why! Why didn't I have this card against that stupid girl! Her and her Drug Reactions and Eye of Truth and… argh!"

"I think he's talking about Aunt Amy," Leigh said when she saw that everyone else looked completely confused.

"It shall help now though! I summon Silent Insect!" (200/300)

Ace blinked at the sight of it. "To be honest, I doubt I need a monster to kill that thing. My shoe would probably work just as well."

"Very funny," Scrab said sarcastically. "When summoned to the field, it switches to defense mode. In addition, as long as it is on my field, all permanent magic and trap cards are negated."

Ace frowned slightly. "That's not good for me."

"But it is for me! I equip my Valuable Armor with Plasma Insect Armor to raise its attack power by 700! (3050/1000) It attacks Kings Knight!"

Ace pulled his hat brim low to shield his eyes from the explosion. When he lifted it, there was no trace of his Kings Knight, and he had acquired a couple of burns.

Ace: 6550

Scrab: 3000

"Not bad," Ace admitted. "But you won't bypass my trap like that again. I'll have Jacks Knight attack Silent Insect, and then end my turn."

The Jacks Knight merely poked the insect with his sword, causing it to vanish. Scrab growled something, and then said, "I will skip my normal summon to activate Valuable Armor's effect! When I bypass a normal summon for my turn, he becomes an effect monster, giving him the ability to attack each of my opponent's monsters in one battle phase! Then I play Evil Energy Explosion! By discarding Ant Colony, I can destroy all permanent traps on the field!"

"Whoops," Ace said as he watched it blow up. "Looks like I'm still in a tight spot."

"He's acting surprisingly calm for someone who is about to lose all of their monsters," Courtney commented.

"Yeah, I'd be swearing up a storm now," Kurtis said. Seeing Chasity's glare, he quickly added, "It was a joke, a joke!"

"Valuable Armor attacks Queens Knight, then Jacks Knight, and then your face down monster!" Scrab announced. Both of the knights were taken down without a problem. But as it attacked the third, a furry creature with curled horns sprang out, lunging for the Valuable Armor.

"Meet Kruuel, (1000/1700)" Ace said. "He doesn't like you. When you destroy him in battle, I flip a coin. If I call it right, one of your monsters is destroyed. I call heads." He caught the coin the same way he had previously. "What'd you know, it's heads!"

The Kruuel ran the Valuable Armor through, causing it to shriek as they both vanished. Scrab stared at the spot they had been, gritting his teeth.

Ace: 5400

Scrab: 3000

"I take it you're done then? Good. I'll lay a monster in defense mode. Go ahead."

"I will!" Scrab slammed a card onto his Duel Disk. "I summon Saber Beetle! (2400/600) Then I remove Valuable Armor and Silent Insect from my Cemetery to special summon Devildozer!" (2800/2600)

"Giant enemy centipede!" Kurtis called as it emerged.

"We need a crab to do the joke properly," Jin pointed out.

"I special summoned Devildozer by removing two Insects from my Cemetery. That's the only way he can come out," Scrab said before Ace could ask. "Saber Beetle attacks your defense monster! Because of his effect, you take damage even though your monster is in defense."

"That's a pity. My Roulette Bomber is toast." (1000/2000)

"Devildozer attacks!" The centipede slammed full force into Ace, who nearly fell backwards. Miraculously, he remained standing, though he clutched his stomach .

Ace: 2200

Scrab: 3000

"Lord Ace, are you all right?" Arcadia said in concern, speaking for the first time during the duel.

"Yeah, no problem here," Ace assured.

"Devildozer's effect forces you to discard a card from the top of your deck when you take battle damage from it," Scrab added, looking far more relaxed at the circumstances. "You may go after that."

"I lose my Second Chance, sadly enough." Ace drew, and smiled. "Worked out for the better though. Check this out! First, I summon Time Magician!" (500/400)

As they gazed at the clock with a wand and face, Dennis said, "I feel like we could be the best of friends. Wonder why."

"I'll lay down two cards, and then play Exchange!" Ace said. "It's a magic card that causes us to look at each other's hands. We each pick a card and swap them. The only card in my hand if Fusion, so enjoy that. What do you have?"

Scrab paled as he showed Ace his hand, while Ace's smile widened. "I thought you might. Insect Barrier please."

"Screw you," Scrab spat, tossing it to him.

"Thanks. I'll play it now." Ace put a hand to his chin as he looked at the field, now with a yellow bug net over his side. "Still, just sitting here won't be any fun. I think I'll take another gamble. With Time Magician's effect, I toss a coin. If I call it right, all your monsters are destroyed. If I'm wrong, all of mine are, and I lose Life Points equal to their attack halved."

"That's insane!" Scrab protested. "You can't be serious! Who would risk such a thing?"

"What's life without a little excitement?" Ace retorted. "I call heads!" He flipped the coin, and everyone stared at the glimmering object as it fell. Ace looked slowly and dramatically at it. "That would be heads!"

"Damn you!" Scrab howled as his insects turned to stone and crumbled apart.

"I'll take that as a compliment. Now, Time Magician attacks!"

The wizard smacked Scrab over the head, causing him to glare at it.

Ace: 2200

Scrab: 2500

"I'm out of options… I summon Howling Insect (1200/1300) and end my turn," Scrab said reluctantly.

"May as well get rid of him too," Ace said. "I'll call heads again." He flipped the coin and then glanced at it. "And it's heads. Talk about my lucky day, huh? But I won't tempt fate any longer. I summon Outburst Bull Oni!" (1200/1200)

Scrab stared at it. "What is that ridiculous thing supposed to be?"

"I flip a coin, and if I call it right, you take 1000 Life Point damage. If I call wrong, I suffer it. But I'm not going to risk it this time," Ace stated. "I call heads. Arcadia, could you activate your Deck Master ability?"

"As you wish." Arcadia held up his sword, and a gold light emerged from it to surround Ace's quarter. It flipped on its own, landing on heads.

"Once a duel, Arcadia can cause a coin to land as I want it to," Ace said to a stunned Scrab. His emotions turned to shock as the bull charged at him, sending him flying with a headbutt.

"Now I'll have Time Magician and Oni finish you off!" Ace declared. The two monsters went after him at once, easily beating him into the ground.

Ace: 2200

Scrab: 0

"N-no…" Scrab struggled upright. "I will… have my revenge!" He began to run, screaming, "I will get you, Amy… whatever your last name is!"

Ace rolled his eyes and threw a card after him, hitting him in the neck. Scrab instantly turned to dust, leaving the card to drop.

"A little too easy for my liking, but hey, he fought back pretty well at some points." Ace picked up the card and returned to the iced sand. "I bet you guys are ready to get out of there now."

"Are we ever!" Kurtis exclaimed.

"Arcadia, can you help me out with them?" Ace stepped slowly forward, and then stopped, frowning as his foot began to sink through the ice. "Oh. This won't end well."

"What's wrong?" Leigh asked. Then she realized that she was starting to get sucked under as well.

"It's the ice!" Shane realized. "It's amazing it even lasted this long!"

"Oh, right, desert. Yeah, we're screwed!" Kurtis said.

"Not if I can help it! Quicksand or not, I'm coming down!" Ace started to step forward.

"No, don't!" Leigh protested. "There's no sense in you getting caught too!"

Just as she said that, a purple tendril suddenly whipped around her, yanking her out of the sand. Numerous more grabbed the others as well, pulling them out and flinging them onto solid ground.

"What the…" Ace said, staring. The others turned to see a sight that shocked them all.

To be continued…


	7. Reincarnation

Satan laced up his ice skates, because here comes another chapter!

**Chapter Seven: Reincarnation**

In front of them stood a girl who looked no older than six. She wore an emerald green shirt, brown shorts, and black shoes, along with a sky-blue scarf that went down her back. Her skin was tanned, and her eyes an eerie yellow. What really stood out to them, however, was her purple hair, which was separated into many tendrils, the same tendrils that had pulled them from the sand. They retracted swiftly into her head though, leaving her hair roughly waist-length.

The group stared in silence, but the girl had no qualms with acting first. She dashed forward and used her hair to spring herself upwards, grabbing onto Leigh's neck. "Hope, Hope, Hope! I finally found someone!"

Leigh stumbled back, desperately gasping for breath. "H-help…"

"Hey, get off her!" Kurtis grabbed the girl and pulled her away.

When she saw him, she tilted her head. "Max? I think that's your name?"

"Max? What? No! That's my dad's name!" Kurtis gave the rest of the group a bewildered look. "How does she know Dad?"

"I have no idea," Leigh said, rubbing her neck. "But she thought I was Mom, apparently."

"Let me try something." Courtney stepped towards her. "Do you recognize me?"

The girl looked at her intently, and then brightened. "Brandi, right?"

Courtney shook her head. "That's my mother. Maybe she knew our parents when they traveled together?"

"This girl very much reminds me of someone written in Teknisk Wereld," Shane mused. "But there are too many differences for me to say they are one and the same."

Nobody had a chance to respond, for the girl caught sight of Lance. "You're the dragon guy! Dragon… um… Draken!"

"Yeah, definitely knew our parents," Lance said. "We should bring one of them to Teknisk Wereld and ask to help clarify who she is."

"That seems like the best thing to do now," Chasity agreed. "Why not have two of you leave to find them? The rest of us will wait here."

"You're that girl who was in a coma!" the girl broke in. "And you got older! Why? Everyone else here is younger! Isn't that how it should be?"

Chasity blinked. "Apparently she has seen me too."

"How about Courtney and I go to look for someone?" Leigh suggested. "You can all wait here with her."

"Sure," Shane said. "You two go ahead."

"Aw, we have to stay with the crazy girl?" Dennis complained. "Next she's probably going to think I'm a stuffed animal!"

"Toy!" the girl said happily while leaping for Dennis.

"See what I mean? Ahhh!" He flew higher to try and avoid her hair, which snaked after him.

"We'd better leave while she's distracted," Courtney muttered to Leigh.

"Good idea." Leigh began to input the command onto her Duel Disk.

This caught the attention of the girl, and she ran over to Leigh at once, clinging onto her leg. "No! Don't go, Hope! It took me so long to find someone!"

"I'm not Hope! And I'll be back soon, really!" Leigh pressed the button on her menu to leave, as did Courtney.

As they vanished, to everyone's surprise, the girl disappeared as well. They stared at where the three had stood until Jin said, "Unexpected!"

"That backs up my theory even more," Shane said.

"If you do not mind me asking, may I inquire as to what your theory is?" Arcadia said.

Shane nodded. "As illogical as it might sound, I think she might be…"

…

When Leigh woke up in the real world, she was amazed to see the girl still gripping onto her. "How did you get here?"

The girl let go and smiled at her. "You brought me here, of course!"

Courtney stood up. "I don't understand at all, but maybe your mom can clear things up." She called, "Aunt Hope! Are you here?"

No response came. Leigh sighed and said, "I guess she's out. Could you get Larka? She might know."

"Sure. You guys wait here." Courtney went out with Naomi cautiously following.

When she was gone, the girl began to hop excitedly around the room. "Oooh! What's this box?" She pressed a switch on the television set, and it turned on, showing a commercial for Meow Mix. "Wow, it talks!"

"Hey, you can't go around doing things like that!" Leigh turned it off hurriedly. "That's a TV, and you shouldn't mess with it."

"Okay!" Seeming undisturbed by the chastising, she jumped on the couch and began bouncing on it. "Whee!"

"Get down from there!" Snatching her away, Leigh scolded, "Don't jump on the furniture! Mom'll blame me if it gets ruined!"

"But it's fun!" the girl said, squirming in her grasp.

"Leigh, I found her!" Courtney's voice came from the door, and then she and Larka entered the room.

When Larka saw the girl, she froze, staring at her. Then she whispered, "Angela?"

The girl let out a joyful cry and flung herself at Larka, who quickly wrapped her arms around her. "Mommy!"

"Huh? Aunt Larka, you have a daughter?" Courtney said in confusion.

Larka shook her head, still gripping tightly onto the girl. "No, but I know who this is, as hard as it is to believe. Her name is Angela, and she was the core of Teknisk Wereld. She died fifteen years ago…"

"Mom said you mourned greatly over someone you lost then," Courtney recalled. "That must have been Angela. I never brought it up for fear of your reaction. But how is she back now?"

"I have no idea," Larka answered, her eyes shimmering. "But I'm grateful that she is… so grateful…"

"Me too! I didn't like being dead! It was really lonely!" Angela said. "But I remembered what you said, that you'd find me again, so I waited and waited for a really long time!"

"Yes, I knew we'd meet again, somehow…" Larka trailed off as they heard someone from the front.

"Larka? Are you there?"

Larka brightened at the voice. "Zack! You have to come and see this!"

Zack walked into the room with a curious look, and then stopped in shock. "Is that…?"

"Daddy!" Angela leapt from Larka to Zack. "You came too!"

"Angela?" An astonished smile spread out on his face. "It really is you, isn't it?"

"Yep, it's me! I've come back!" Angela said excitedly.

"Yet you're so different," Zack said. "You look like a child now, and act like one."

"What did she act like before?" Courtney asked.

"Cold and robotic. She wasn't even supposed to have emotions," Larka explained. "She showed some on occasion, but it was a rare occurrence. Now, she can't seem to stop showing them!"

"Angela also appeared to be a young adult," Zack added. "So this is certainly a surprise."

"How did she even come back to life?" Leigh said.

Shaking her head, Larka said, "I have no idea. I think I'll call Katrina and ask her. She should have some idea of what happened."

"I'll get the phone for you," Courtney offered. She left the room to do so.

"Also, why did she call you Mommy and Daddy?" Leigh asked.

"Because they are!" Angela cut in. "My mind's telling me they are!"

"It seems she was programmed to call us that," Zack said, appearing amused. "All the more evidence Katrina was behind it. She knew how close Larka was to Angela, and that I cared for her as well."

Courtney came back holding the phone. "Here you go."

"I'll put it on speaker so all of us can hear." Larka dialed the buttons swiftly and waited as the dial tone sounded.

Katrina's voice soon came from the phone. "Katrina Bifrost speaking."

Taking Angela back from Zack, Larka said, "Katrina, this is Larka. Were you responsible for bringing Angela back?"

"So you found her!" Katrina said, sounding pleased. "That's a relief. I was wondering where she had wandered off to."

"She is with us now," Zack replied. "Though she is quite different looking."

Katrina laughed. "I thought you might like that! My grandfather and I had an interesting idea for her. When you first met her, she had been designed to be completely based on duty. But with you and your friends protecting her, we thought this time, Angela could have a chance to grow up. She's reentering life as a child, with the chance to learn and develop at her own pace."

"That's wonderful!" Larka said happily. "And from what Angela is calling us, I assume you want her to live with us?"

"That's the idea, unless you're against it for some reason."

"Of course we aren't," Zack assured. "We would love to have her stay."

"We may need to call her in a few times if Teknisk Wereld is ever in danger again," Katrina warned. "Otherwise, she's all yours. I thought she'd be happiest with you."

"How did you bring her back?" Zack inquired.

"Remember the data you brought me? I found Angela's core data inside it. I was astonished, and with Grandfather's help, we were able to restore her completely, even her soul! It took us fifteen years though, and I have no idea if we could do it again. Keep her safe, okay?"

"With my life," Larka said firmly.

"I knew you two would make good parents. Angela, if you're there, have a good time!"

"I will!" Angela answered. "Bye!"

Once Larka turned the phone off, she asked them, "How did you meet up with Angela anyway?"

"There was a mean guy attacking them!" Angela exclaimed. "They were about to die so I-"

Leigh hurriedly covered her mouth, resorting in the rest of her words being muffled. Seeing Larka's odd look, Leigh explained, "She's exaggerating. We just found a random monster in the desert and Angela helped us fight it off. That's all."

"If you say so," Larka said doubtfully.

Any other thoughts she had were cut off by the phone ringing. Surprised, Leigh picked it up and answered. "Driger residence." She brightened. "Oh, Lilian, hi. You want Courtney? She's here, hold on." Leigh handed the phone to her.

"Lilian? Yeah, it's me. What? Mom's ready to come home? That's great! Yeah, I'll go back home and wait for you there. Okay, see you soon, bye." Hanging up, Courtney told them, "Lilian wants me to help look after Mom after she's back. I have to leave now."

"That's fine," Leigh said. "I'll go back to Teknisk Wereld and tell the others to quit for the day. Have a nice time."

"Thanks, I will! See you guys later. Come on, Naomi!" Courtney went to the door with Naomi following her less than eagerly.

"We should leave too, so we can get Angela settled in," Larka said.

"Come visit again soon," Leigh said. Larka nodded, and then she left with Zack and Angela. Once they were gone, Leigh sighed in relief. "That was close… Angela nearly gave everything away. Better get back to everyone else now." Lying down again, she activated her Envoyant Machine.

…

"Angela? You're serious?" Lance said incredulously.

"Her abilities and knowledge match with what we know about her," Shane stated. "I have no idea why she is a child now, or why she displays emotions, but it makes sense otherwise."

"If she was made of data, it could probably be manipulated to make her different." Ace shrugged. "Not that I'd know personally."

"At least Hope should know what to do with her," Chasity said.

"Right. That's why I'd like to bring up another point," Lance said.

"What is it?" Kurtis asked.

"The Enslaved are getting to be more and more dangerous," Lance said. "And we could potentially be in danger in real life, as Shane brought up earlier. So why not do what our parents did? We should all get together in real life."

"Whaaa?" Jin said. "Are you serious?"

"I see where you are coming from," Shane replied. "However, that might be difficult to do. We would have to give excuses to our families, and find out how to pay for flights to wherever the meeting location is."

Lance grinned at that. "My dad can handle the flights, at least. He's a pilot, and if I told him about you guys, he could get you to South Carolina. That's where most of us live. And we could just tell our parents that we've made some new friends, and we were hoping to meet up with them. There's only so much time we have in Teknisk Wereld, after all."

"Yeah! They don't even have food here! Not that I eat anyway…" Dennis muttered.

Shane tapped his gloved arm absentmindedly. "My mentor is reasonable. I suppose I could convince him to leave for a short visit."

"I don't even have a family to speak with," Ace said. "Even better, I already live in South Carolina. It would just be a matter of finding you all."

"While these are valid ideas, I think we're getting ahead of ourselves," Chasity stated. "So far, there has been nothing to indicate there is any danger in real life. We should only do this as a last resort."

Arcadia spoke up. "If you do not mind me interjecting my own opinion, I must agree. It would take much effort to do this, and if there was no solid reason for doing it, we might later regret it."

Ace gave him a quick look, but whatever expression he had cleared before they could identify it. "Yeah. I'll go with that too."

"All right. We should keep it in mind, though. Thanks for the idea, Lance," Shane said.

"Hey, anything that can help, right?" Lance said.

Leigh appeared beside them in a flash. "Sorry for the wait."

"No big deal," Kurtis said. "What'd you find out?"

After she detailed what had happened, Dennis said, "Looks like Shane was right."

"Dad mentioned once that they used to say that a lot about Will. He and Shane should meet some time," Leigh joked.

Shane shook his head. "From what I read, Will was a lot smarter than me. I'd feel inferior if I met him."

Looking around the area, Lance asked, "Hey, where's Courtney? Did she stay behind?"

"Her mom is coming home from the hospital, so she had to," Leigh said. "I was thinking we could stop for the day and meet up again tomorrow."

"Where should we meet?" Shane asked.

"I'd like to see the forest, personally," Leigh said. "Would that be all right?"

"All of the areas are dangerous at this point, so why not?" Chasity said. "We'll meet at nine Eastern time."

"Sounds like a plan," Ace agreed before vanishing. The others followed his lead.

…

Though Zack and Larka had been unprepared to have a new family member, it was surprisingly easy to get her settled in. Since she did not have to eat, they were fine with food supplies. Not having another bed threatened to be a problem, but that was solved when Angela declared that she wanted to sleep with them. Recalling how Angela had suffered loneliness for so long, they agreed to her request. Having control over how her clothes looked eliminated the need for any others as well.

"Really, I can't think of anything else we need," Larka mused as Angela bounced on the bed.

"Great patience," Zack said dryly.

"Very funny." Larka grabbed Angela before she could land again. "Angela, would you like to meet some more of your old friends?"

"Sure!" was her happy response.

"Did you have someone in mind?" Zack asked curiously.

"Yes. I was hoping to speak to you and Max at the same time about something," Larka explained.

That was what led them to driving to the officials' headquarters, Zack handling the car since Larka was still uneasy with the concept of driving. She doubted she would ever get used to it. The entire trip, Angela kept looking out of the windows in obvious fascination at the scenery.

With only a couple of odd looks at Angela, the three of them soon came to the front of a door with a plate labeling it the office of The Trinity: Max, Zack, and Larka.

"Amazing how far we've come as officials, isn't it?" Larka said.

Zack nodded, and knocked on the door. Max opened it a moment later, and blinked several times.

"Sorry for the abruptness of our visit," Larka said, smiling at his reaction.

"Is that… Angela?" Max managed to say.

"Max!" Angela exclaimed, before looking confused. "Why do you look older now?"

"Vice versa for you," Max said, letting them enter before shutting the door. "So this must be the project Katrina was talking about."

"That's right. We were reunited with her earlier today." Larka briefly summarized what had happened.

"That's pretty amazing. Glad to see you again, Angela," Max said.

"Me too!" Angela answered. "I missed everyone! And I'm going to get to make a lot of new friends too!"

"New friends?" Max asked.

"Yeah! All the people I met in Teknisk Wereld, I'm going to travel with them!" Angela announced.

Larka gave her a surprised look. "You never mentioned this before. Why do you want to?"

"I really feel like I should go with them," Angela said simply. "That's all. It feels like the right thing to do."

Zack frowned slightly, but did not speak. Larka responded by saying, "Angela, could you go outside for just a minute? I want to speak to Max and Zack alone."

"Okay!" Angela bounded outside, leaving Larka to close it.

"Something wrong?" Max inquired as she sat down.

"Yes. Earlier today, Angela mentioned that she met with your children and their friends when a man was trying to kill them," Larka explained. "Leigh was quick to assure us that she was exaggerating, but it worries me nonetheless. I think they may be in danger."

"That is troublesome," Max agreed with a grim expression.

"Angela's words now only make it more likely," Zack stated. "It is very likely she wants to help them because her protocol tells her to. It is possible either they or Teknisk Wereld itself faces peril."

"It sounds like they don't want to tell us about that though," Max said. "Should we confront them on it?"

"I have another idea," Larka said. "How about I follow them?"

"You certainly are capable of doing it without being detected," Zack said.

"You're willing to take the risks?" Max asked.

Larka nodded. "Not only do I care about all of the children, but now that Angela is here… It's my duty to keep her safe. I almost feel like a parent now. It's something I've always wanted, to have a child…"

Zack put a hand on her shoulder, causing her to smile gratefully. Turning over the words in his mind, Max said, "Okay then. Keep an eye on them for a few days. But if you get a gist of what is going on, tell us. Those are my children out there too."

"Of course," Larka said as she and Zack stood. "I will do all that I can."

When they went outside, they found Angela talking to Captain Lapis Roman, who looked bewildered. She turned to Larka and Zack as they came and said, "I see the Guardian is back."

"At long last," Larka agreed, picking up Angela. "We'll be back at work tomorrow, Captain Roman."

"Sounds good. See you then," she said before walking away. Larka and Zack left as well, heading back home.

…

The first thing Brandi did upon arriving home was hug Courtney, who enthusiastically returned it. Mana was also joyful at her arrival, while Naomi watched her nervously from afar.

"So how were your first few days in Teknisk Wereld?" Brandi asked as she sat down on the couch.

"They were really fun! We made some new friends and have had some great duels!" Courtney mentally told herself that at least she was not lying, merely leaving facts out.

"That's good to hear. And it looks like you've gotten a very cute Soul Monster," Brandi said. Naomi blushed at that.

"I sure did! That's Naomi, a Harpy Girl. Say hi to my mom, Naomi, don't be shy!"

"H-hello," Naomi stammered before hiding behind Courtney.

Though Courtney was exasperated, Brandi did not seem concerned. "She just needs time to get to know me, that's all." She paused, and then asked, "Have you heard anything from your father?"

Courtney had been afraid she would ask that. Biting her lip, she shook her head. "Nothing."

"It's been three months since he left for Asia for that photo expedition, and he's a month late getting back," Brandi said worriedly. She hid her concern though as she stood. "If you don't mind, I'm going to take a nap before I start dinner. Can you hold out for a while?"

"Sure. Rest well." Courtney watched her mother leave. When she heard her door shut, Courtney quietly followed, stopping outside of her room.

From inside, she could hear Brandi sobbing heavily. Her heart panged at the noise, and she drifted back into the living room, which Mana had already exited from.

"What's wrong?" Naomi asked.

"My mom's really upset about Dad," Courtney said gloomily. "I'm worried about her."

"Well, she's been at the hospital all this time, right?" Naomi said, her voice free of stammers due to Courtney being the only one there. "Maybe she was lonely. You're here to help her now."

"That's true," Courtney said. "But I can't tell her now about wanting to quit gymnastics. That would only add to her concerns."

"Oh…" Naomi shook her head, not knowing what to say.

"Maybe some other day." Courtney sighed and leaned back, feeling far more tired than she thought she should.

…

Though Kurtis seemed as carefree as ever, instantly diving into a video game upon getting home, Lance noticed that Leigh appeared depressed. She kept pulling out her Soul Card, looking at it, and then putting it back, only to look at again minutes later.

"What's wrong?" Lance asked as he came over.

Leigh looked up at him. "It's my Soul Monster. I was wondering why it did not come out when we were in danger earlier."

"I can answer that one!" Dennis interrupted, flying down from above. "It's because Ace, and then Angela, had complete control over the situation. Usually a Soul Monster only comes out when they are absolutely needed."

"I wish it wasn't like that," Leigh said mournfully.

"Hey, don't feel bad. That just means your Soul Monster is very brave," Lance told her. "It must be, if it's waiting for you to be in danger, because that means it'll risk everything to save you."

"Yeah, I bet you're right," Leigh said, smiling at the thought. "Thanks."

"Your monster will be just as brave as me!" Dennis declared, puffing out his chest.

Lance laughed in response. "You are pretty brave for a little guy. Still, it was my idea to throw you at Dark Scythe."

"Don't think I've forgiven you for that!" Dennis said, pouting.

Kurtis poked his head from his room. "Would you guys please quit being so noisy? I'm trying to concentrate on my game!"

"Because a game totally needs concentration," Dennis snorted.

"It's Fire Emblem: Radiant Dawn, so of course it does!" Kurtis left in a huff.

"We do have more productive things to do than just sit around here," Leigh said. "How about we look through more of Mom's books?"

"Sounds good to me," Lance said. "Know thy enemy, right?"

To be continued…


	8. A Sinking Feeling

An update? How could this be?

**Chapter Eight: A Sinking Feeling**

Chasity felt as if she had barely laid her head on her pillow before a rapid knocking awoke her. Mumbling all the way, Chasity went to the front door and flung it open.

She was greeted by Angela standing there with a bright smile. "Good morning!"

"What's good about it?" Chasity said grumpily.

Angela tilted her head. "Um… not sure. But it felt like something I should say!" She slipped into the house before Chasity could respond.

When realizing she was headed towards the living room, Chasity asked, "What are you doing here?"

"I'm going with you to help everyone out!" Angela said proudly. "Don't worry, you'll be safe as long as I'm around!"

Chasity gave her a doubtful look. "Did Larka and Zack agree to this?"

"Yep!" Angela looked around. "Where are they?"

"What, the kids? They're still asleep, like anyone sane would be," Chasity stated.

"That's no fun!" Angela ran towards their rooms, and Chasity heard her shout, "Time to wake up!" along with a thud.

"Help, I'm being attacked!" Kurtis yelled, causing Chasity to sigh.

Thanks to Angela's efforts, Leigh, Kurtis, and Lance were ready to go in record time, though Kurtis still complained about the method of awakening. "Chasity, why'd you even let her in?"

"I have no idea," Chasity said.

"I was having a nice dream too, where I was actually big!" Dennis said mournfully.

"You'll get there someday," Lance said teasingly.

A knock caught their attention, and after Chasity went to answer it, she returned with Courtney and Naomi. Courtney blinked in surprise at seeing them. "You're already awake?"

"Thanks to the hyper midget," Kurtis grumbled.

"Quit whining. It'll do you some good to not sleep in," Petra said.

"Her timing was actually pretty accurate," Leigh admitted. "Shane and Ace should be arriving in Teknisk Wereld shortly, so we should get over there."

"We all look ready to go, so what's stopping us?" Courtney asked as she brought out her Duel Disk.

A few moments after necessary preparations, they all went unconscious, with Angela clinging onto Leigh and vanishing as Leigh closed her eyes.

* * *

The group arrived amongst healthy green-leaved trees that blotted out a clear, blue sky. Their attention was drawn to a stone tablet though, one with a rectangle engraved on it.

"What is that thing?" Kurtis asked.

"It's used for teleportation." Shane stepped out from the nearby trees, Jin following. "You place a card in the slot and are taken to the area in Teknisk Wereld that it represents."

"That's handy," Courtney commented.

"Though one existed some time ago, the additional ones are new," Shane said.

"Enough on the technical talk! Are we all here?" Jin asked.

"No, Ace hasn't arrived," Lance said as he looked around.

"Typical," Chasity muttered.

"I resent that remark," Ace said as walked over with Arcadia. "You guys were early; I came right on time."

Seeing Chasity's expression, Leigh quickly cut in. "Either way, we're all here. We should start looking around."

Still feeling sour, Chasity said, "How do we know which way to look?"

"Let's pick a random direction! That always works!" Dennis said.

Jin clapped his hands. "I like how he thinks!"

"It's not like we have any better ideas," Ace said with a shrug.

"Okay, masters of disasters, please tell us which way to go," Kurtis said.

Looking thoughtful, Jin said, "We should go by that name more often. It's a cool one."

"Totally! As for the question…" Dennis closed his eyes, flew into the air, and spun around several times before stopping abruptly and pointing. "That way!"

"Why not?" Lance said as they walked off.

Chasity sighed. "I have a feeling we're going to regret this." Despite that, she went after them.

From the shadows, Larka appeared puzzled. "They don't know where they're going? Still, I'm suspicious about this whole thing."

Malon whined, clearly wanting to go after them.

"Sorry Malon, but this is a stealth mission, and you don't do well at those." She held up his Soul Card, and though he gave her the best puppy eyes that he could, he vanished. Larka then quietly followed the group.

While they traveled, Leigh looked around frequently. "I can only imagine how amazed Mom was to see this."

"Oh yeah, this was the first place she appeared in, wasn't it?" Kurtis recalled.

"It is a beautiful location," Arcadia said. "Many people go here before anywhere else."

"I know I did," Shane said. "My mentor brought me here."

"Not me," Ace said. "I wound up in the ice lands. What a grand welcome, huh?"

Chasity's eyes hardened at this, but she turned away quickly, simply saying, "I appeared in the forest too."

"Imagine if someone appeared in the desert first," Kurtis joked. "They'd never want to come back!"

"Hey! That's where I was!" Angela said, putting her hands on her hips.

"Yeah, well, you're weird," Kurtis pointed out.

"Look who's talking," Leigh muttered.

"Meanie!" Angela used her hair as a boost to leap to Leigh and cling to her neck. "Hope, he called me weird!"

"My name isn't Hope!" Leigh choked out.

"I guess it'll take a while for Angela to remember some of our names," Shane said with an amused smile.

"The second she calls me Max, I'm going to put a record next to her ear when she sleeps that says, 'His name is Kurtis' endlessly," Kurtis said.

Angela, overhearing him, said cheerfully, "I don't sleep!"

"So much for that idea," Kurtis sighed.

As they continued, the scenery began to change. The emerald green started to become sourer in color, and the grass turned into moss. The ground squished beneath their feet, and the trees started to overhang numerous areas.

"I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," Kurtis remarked.

"This is the swamp area," Shane stated.

"Swamp? Aren't swamps, you know, dangerous?" Dennis said.

"Not this one! It was made with the hazards of usual swamps eliminated. You know, like nasty things such as deep slime holes," Jin explained.

"Lovely as that is, every area is a dangerous one with our enemies running around them," Ace stated.

"For once, I agree. We should keep an eye out," Chasity said.

They had not gone much farther before Angela perked up. "I think I saw something over there!" she said, pointing.

The rest of them looked, and Courtney said, "I don't see anything."

"Wait here, I'll go look!" Before they could protest, Angela hopped away, soon being lost from sight.

"I guess we have no choice but to wait," Lance said.

"I hope she does not do that often," Arcadia said, blinking.

Petra shook her head. "Sadly, I get the feeling she does."

While most of them stood still, Kurtis grew impatient, pacing back and forth. "I hate just sitting here and doing nothing!"

"Kurtis, stop that," Leigh said in annoyance. "You're making me anxious!"

"I can't help it! I have to do something or I'll-"

Kurtis was abruptly cut off as the land beneath him gave away. He plunged into swamp waters, becoming completely submerged.

"Kurtis!" Leigh cried, running forward.

Lance quickly grabbed her before she could get far. "Don't! You'll get sucked in too!"

"Jin, see if you can find him!" Shane ordered.

"I'm on it!" Jin flew to where Kurtis had gone in and threw his hands into the water. He came back up with a grim expression. "No sign of him…"

"No!" Leigh struggled, but could not break free of Lance's grip. "Brother!"

Suddenly, a flash of light appeared from inside the swamp, and a monster appeared on solid land. It had a metal body, with a blue torso, red arms, silver legs, and a large red circle on its chest. Its head contained no eyes, instead placing a red visor where they should have been.

"Whoa! Who's this guy?" Dennis exclaimed.

The robot responded by reaching directly into the swamp with his long arms. A moment later, he pulled a green figure out who coughed several times.

"Kurtis!" Leigh said in complete relief.

"Gah! Where am I? Someone get this stuff off me!" Kurtis pleaded.

Chasity, who looked reassured to even see him, inserted a card. Rain fell from the sky and caused the grimy coating to vanish. "Blessed Rain. Be thankful I didn't use Tidal Wave."

"Thanks," Kurtis gasped. He then looked over at the robot. "You're my Soul Monster, aren't you?"

"What else would I be, runt?" it said emotionlessly.

"Hey! Who are you calling a runt!" Kurtis said, shaking a fist.

"Compared to him, you are a runt," Dennis pointed out.

"Look who's talking!" Kurtis glanced at the robot again. "At least it's cool that you're a Machine King.What's your name?"

"I go by Epsilon," he responded as he set Kurtis down.

"Works for me." Kurtis glanced at Jin. "Okay wise guy, what was that you were saying about the swamp being safe?"

"Hey, that shouldn't have happened!" Jin protested. "Someone must have been responsible for it!"

"Yes. That would be me."

They turned to see a man who wore white clothing that was dirtied from the swamp. His blond hair swept to his shoulders, and his green eyes held a hint of regret. A sword was strapped to his side, and he was chained like the other Enslaved had been. Beside him stood a machine with green armor and a pink head, which had an iron band around it. An odd device was where its mouth should have been, and its eyes were red and blank.

"Another Enslaved, who would have thunk it?" Kurtis said sarcastically.

"What a perfect name for us," the man said bitterly. "I'm being forced to use cheap, dishonorable tactics that are even worse than the one I swore revenge against!"

"Then I'll be happy to put you out of your misery," Kurtis said, activating his Duel Disk. "Who are you?"

Robin followed suit. "Robin, and my Soul Monster is Android, an Android Psycho Shocker. As much as I want to leave this cursed existence, I will be forced to fight as best as able, so prepare yourself!"

From her hiding spot, Larka frowned to herself. _Robin? Where have I heard that name before?_

Before they could begin, Angela bounded over. "I found it! It was a bunny!"

"Easily distracted much?" Courtney muttered.

"Don't worry about that," Leigh said. "Watch, Kurtis is about to have a duel!"

Angela, who had not seen a duel yet, went silent to observe with wide eyes as they drew.

Kurtis: 8000

Robin: 8000

"In exchange for my cowardly tactics, you may go first," Robin stated.

"Nice to see someone who isn't being a total jerk for once!" Kurtis said. "I'll set one monster and lay a card down."

"I will begin by summoning Dark Elf (2000/800) and placing a card."

Kurtis gave the Dark Elf a doubtful look. "That's a really weird monster to use. Doesn't it cost 1000 Life Points to attack with her?"

"Yes," Robin said.

"Eh, whatever you want to do. I'll summon Magic Freight Car Bokoichi (500/500) and play Machine Replication Factory! That allows me to special summon up to two more of a Machine on my field, so long as it has 500 or less attack."

"Why get two more Bokoichis? They seem useless," Robin stated.

"They are, until I flip summon Magic Locomotive Dekoichi! (1400/1000) His effect allows me to draw a number of cards equal to the number of Bokoichis I have on the field!"

"Interesting. Is he a Dark Main-Type?" Robin inquired.

Kurtis frowned slightly. "Um, yeah. Why does it matter?"

"Because I can now stop him. I chain a permanent trap card, Darkness Absorbing Magic Mirror! All Dark monsters in the Cemetery and on the field have their effects negated!"

"Ugh! So that's why you used Dark Elf!" Kurtis realized. "You lose her terrible effect, and make me lose all my good ones!"

"Basically," Robin said. "Will you do anything else?"

Kurtis shook his head. "No, I'm out of options."

"In that case, I will summon Hell Dragon. (2000/0) Normally he would be sent to the Cemetery after being in battle, but my Mirror negates that. Both of my monsters attack!"

"Afraid not! I activate Entry Forbidden! No Entry!!" Kurtis announced.

"Geez, they really get the point across," Jin remarked. "It would have been enough to just use Entry Forbidden or No Entry, but they threw in both? Why?"

"It's a card game, logic doesn't have to apply," Lance said.

"All of our monsters in attack mode get switched to defense," Kurtis explained.

"Interesting. In that case, I will end my battle phase and switch Dark Elf back to attack mode," Robin said. "I will also equip Reborn Ribbon to Hell Dragon."

"What does that do?" Kurtis asked.

"If the monster equipped with it dies in battle, it is special summoned from the Cemetery at the end phase," Robin said.

Kurtis shook his head. "That's annoying. Still, let's see what I can do. I'll summon Machine King Prototype! (1600/1500) For each Machine Sub-Type on the field, his stats increase by 100, so now he's a formidable force! (2100/2000) I'll switch all my monsters to attack mode, and then begin the assault! Machine King Prototype destroys Dark Elf, and a Bokoichi will attack Hell Dragon! The rest of them will attack directly!"

Robin held his arms in front of him as a shield while the train cars crashed into him. He nearly fell over, but managed to hold his ground.

Kurtis: 8000

Robin: 5500

"First blood is yours," Robin said. "Are you done?"

"Yeah, I'll end my turn."

As Kurtis said that, Robin's Hell Dragon returned to his field. "If your Machines are powering the Prototype, I will have to get rid of them first. I summon another Dark Elf and lay a card down. Both my monsters attack Bokoichis!"

The Hell Dragon's flames and Dark Elf's magic caused both of the cars to explode, showering Kurtis with shrapnel. He winced at the piercing pains.

Kurtis: 5000

Robin: 5500

"Shuffle the Bokoichis into your deck," Epsilon said.

"Huh? Why?" Kurtis asked.

"My Deck Master ability allows any monster you special summon to be shuffled into the deck instead of going to the Cemetery when destroyed," Epsilon explained.

"Awesome!" Kurtis turned back to Robin after taking care of that. "As for you, I have a counter to your strategy! I summon Victory Viper XX03 (1200/1000) and play Power Capsule! This allows me to use one of his effects instantly, instead of having to kill a monster with him first. I'll choose to destroy a face-up magic or trap card, which will be your Mirror!"

"Resourceful," Robin complimented. "But your Prototype still cannot kill any of my monsters."

"No, but I can suicide against Dark Elf to get rid of her with equal attack power," Kurtis said. "So I'll do that!"

"A nice try, but I have a counter." Robin flipped over a card. "My permanent trap, Skill Drain, costs me 1000 Life Points. But it also negates all effects on the field."

"Ugh! That means I lose my attack power from Prototype's effect!" (1600/1500)

"That's right. It also means my Dark Elf can attack freely now!"

Kurtis yelped as some of the Dark Elf's attack his him, but he fared better than Prototype, who outright exploded.

Kurtis: 4600

Robin: 4500

"Time for a change of plans!" Kurtis said. "I switch Bokoichi and Dekoichi to defense mode, and lay down two cards!"

"A defensive tactic now? It will not save you," Robin stated. "I summon Chainsaw Insect. (2400/0) Normally, when he does damage, you would draw a card, but that won't be happening with Skill Drain out. I attack Vic Viper with Chainsaw Insect!"

"Just what I wanted!" Kurtis said with a smile. "I activate Cover Fire! This trap adds one of my monster's attacks to the monster that's currently in a damage step. My Vic Viper will get Dekoichi's attack added to him! (2600/1000) He'll lose it after this, but it'll be worth it."

The Vic Viper counterattacked, blasting down the Chainsaw Insect. Robin nodded in approval. "While a good move, it still does not save you from my Dark Elf. She attacks Vic Viper!" (1200/1000)

"This won't stop your attack, but I'll activate Cracking Hatchet anyway," Kurtis said. "By choosing your Dark Elf, her attack will be lowered by 500 on every standby phase I have." He winced as his Vic Viper was destroyed.

Kurtis: 3800

Robin: 4300

"There is nothing I can do to stop that," Robin said. "Go ahead."

"Your Dark Elf loses attack power now. (1500/800) That means I can destroy her! I summon Blue Thunder T45 (1700/1000) and attack Dark Elf!"

Kurtis: 3800

Robin: 4100

"For every monster you destroy, I have another," Robin stated. "I summon Dual Lancer." (1800/1400)

"That's not a very strong monster," Kurtis said.

"No, but it is a backup for when Skill Drain is not on the field," Robin said. "See, my Dual Lancer has an effect that makes it a normal monster. But with Skill Drain, it loses that effect."

"What? But that means it's basically a normal monster anyway!" Kurtis protested.

"Yes, but it is not, it is an effect monster without an effect," Robin explained.

"Yeah, but an effect monster without an effect is basically a normal monster, which means… Arrrrrgh! Paradox!" Kurtis said, clutching his head.

"…In any case, Dual Lancer attacks Blue Thunder. Your move."

Kurtis: 3700

Robin: 4100

"All I can do is lay a card down."

"Then you are ill prepared to deal with my strongest monster," Robin stated. "I summon Mystic Beast King-Barbaros! (3000/1200) I can normal summon him with his effect. He would have his attack decreased to 1900 for this, but Skill Drain negates that. I also equip Reborn Ribbon to Barbaros! My two monsters attack your Machines!"

Kurtis grimaced as his cars were torn apart. "I'm going to need something good to come back from this." He drew, and his expression became brighter. "There we go! I'll take a page from your book and summon Transformable Mechanical Beast Gunner Dragon! (2800/2000) He works just like yours; if I summon him without sacrifice, his stats are halved. But your Skill Drain causes that penalty to go away! Gunner Dragon attacks Dual Lancer!"

Machine guns cut through the Dual Lancer, a few shots hitting Robin as well.

Kurtis: 3700

Robin: 3100

"Wow, Kurtis is actually using his head," Leigh remarked.

"I know I am, and it hurts a lot!" Kurtis responded. Leigh sighed.

"A good move, but you can't stop Barbaros! He attacks!" Robin said.

"I've got you! I activate my instant magic card, Limiter Removal!" Kurtis countered. "That doubles the attack of any Machines on my field! They'll be destroyed at the end phase for this, but it'll be worth it!" (5600/2000)

Not even flinching from Barbaros' attack, the Gunner Dragon fired its guns, tearing it completely apart and landing a heavy blow on Robin.

Kurtis: 3700

Robin: 500

"What a powerful magic card…" Robin said. "Nevertheless, Barbaros will return due to Reborn Ribbon, and you are left completely defenseless."

"I wouldn't say that," Kurtis said. "I play Jar of Covetousness! It allows me to shuffle five monsters from my Cemetery into my deck, and then draw two cards. I'll shuffle in Bokoichi, Dekoichi, Vic Viper, Blue Thunder T45, and Machine King Prototype!" Kurtis did so, and then drew two cards. "Hah! I have you! I play Early Burial for Gunner Dragon. It'll cost me 800 Life Points, but it's worth it, because now I can equip him with Bow of Falling Stars-Shiiru! It lowers his attack by 1000, but allows him to attack directly! Gunner Dragon finishes you off!"

A final burst of machine guns hit Robin, sending him to his knees.

Kurtis: 2900

Robin: 0

Robin managed to look up, and was smiling. "Thank you… I am grateful to be free…" He then vanished, along with his Soul Monster.

"Way to go, Kurtis!" Leigh said.

Kurtis gave them a thumbs-up. "See, I can handle myself!"

"About as well as a recently-born child," Epsilon droned.

Kurtis glared at him. "You're supposed to support me!"

"Either way, we're done here," Chasity said.

"Thank everything for that, this place sucks!" Dennis said.

"But it has bunnies!" Angela protested.

"Lots of places have bunnies," Ace assured her. "We'll find a nicer area."

"How about the lake shore?" Lance suggested. "We haven't been there yet, and judging by Hope's books, it's a pretty important place."

"Sounds good to me," Courtney said, and with no disagreements, they headed away from the swamp.

Larka remained where she was for a moment, frowning. "This is an odd situation… I don't know what to make of it yet. I should keep following for a while longer." She slowly went after them.

To be continued…


	9. Tie of Blood

Another? What is this madness?

**Chapter Nine: Tie of Blood**

"You truly wish to confront them?" The woman's voice echoed through the dark room, leaving a chilling ringing in its wake.

The one who responded did not seem disturbed by how she spoke. "Yes. He is a murderer. I must stop him before he makes anyone else suffer."

"Very well. You are free to eliminate him," the woman said. "But remember who I want left alive."

"I will. Thank you." Rising, her subordinate left the room.

"My, what a tangled web that one is in…" the woman mused, with nobody left to hear her.

* * *

Having nothing better to do while they walked, some of the members chatted about Kurtis' duel. Leigh in particular was amazed by how he had played. "You were actually outthinking your opponent! That's really a first."

"He had to, considering all of his monsters were weaker than Robin's," Courtney said.

Kurtis held up his pointer finger. "Careful planning always overcomes brute force."

"What self-help booklet did you take that quote from?" Dennis asked.

Kurtis reached up and yanked his tail, sending him crashing down. "You shouldn't mock people who are bigger than you!"

"Now if only Kurtis would listen to his own advice," Lance muttered. Leigh and Courtney nodded in agreement.

"I have calculated that the chances of that are zero percent," Epsilon said.

"Even my own Soul Monster thinks I'm hopeless," Kurtis sighed.

"Not thinks, knows," Epsilon stated.

"You're really cheerful!" Kurtis said, crossing his arms.

Despite Kurtis having problems with his Soul Monster, Leigh felt a pang of jealousy at seeing them converse. She tried to get the emotion to die, guilty over thinking such things, but it was not easy to do.

"C-Courtney?" Naomi stammered, drifting next to her.

"What is it?" Courtney asked.

"I don't understand… w-why do we have to k-keep fighting when t-they don't want to either?" Seeing Courtney's confused look, Naomi elaborated. "Robin… he didn't want to f-fight us. So why…?"

"Something is forcing them to, and we have to retaliate to defend ourselves," Courtney said. "That's all there is to it."

"But it's so sad…" Naomi said, looking at the ground. "Why fight… w-when there's no point?"

Having overheard them, Ace made a remark. "A lot of things in life seem pointless. But they're still there, and we have to learn how to handle them. I guess you could call it a challenge for us."

"A c-challenge?" Naomi asked.

"Yeah. We'd never grow up if we didn't face challenges," Ace stated. "They could be something as simple as having a hard time getting good grades in school, or something as difficult as adapting to having a parent die. Yet at the end of it, you've changed. Is it for the better? For some, they grow stronger from their trials. Others collapse and live a miserable existence. That's the way things are."

Naomi hid behind Courtney with a worried expression, but Courtney appeared thoughtful. "I never thought of it that way."

"So what are you now, a philosopher?" Chasity said sarcastically.

Ace shrugged. "I'm just saying what I think. Whether you want to agree with me or not is your choice."

Jin glanced at Arcadia. "Does he say stuff like this to you?"

"Only when bored," Arcadia replied.

"I don't blame him for being bored! Walking from place to place is dull!" Jin said.

"At least you get to float," Lance said. "We actually have to strain our muscles to reach other locations."

"Hah! I win again!" Dennis said, flying beside them.

Leigh, who Angela was clinging to again, said, "You should take Lance's advice and walk!"

"No way! This is fun!" Angela said with a wide grin.

"Fun for you, maybe," Leigh muttered.

"We should be out of here soon," Shane said, indicating to the stone tablet as they passed. "There's where we started."

"Great! Let's get out of here!" Kurtis said.

They soon exited the forest, and were able to see the town a good distance away. There were also the plains, which stretched out as far as they could see, and the mountains in the opposite direction.

"We'll have to travel across the plains to get to the lake," Petra stated. "Let's get started."

They began to walk towards the plains, only for a voice to cause them to halt. "You're not going anywhere. Not until I have dealt with him."

Turning, they saw a young man walk out from behind a tree. He wore a black robe with red clothing underneath that they could barely see. His red hair cascaded down his back, and his hard green eyes were completely focused on one member of the group.

"I don't suppose you remember who I am, Shane?" he said, cutting through the silence.

They looked at Shane to see he had gone completely pale. He finally broke out of his shock to say, "Brother…"

"What? Shane has a brother?" Kurtis said in surprise.

"Yeah, but he disappeared a long time ago! Shane hasn't seen him since they were kids!" Jin shook a fist at Shane's brother. "You could have at least written to him or something, you jerk!"

"Why would I do that? I personally never wanted to see him again," he said in a harsh tone. "Shane, I don't suppose you've told your friends about me?"

Shane merely shook his head, while Courtney said in an exasperated tone, "Stop acting so high and mighty. Who are you?"

"My name is Shawn. Shane and I are twins," Shawn stated.

"Wow, creative parents they had," Kurtis muttered.

"If you never wanted to see him again, why come now?" Leigh asked, tense over the entire confrontation.

"Because I am the only one who knows the truth." Shawn stepped forward and pointed at Shane. "Brother, you are a murderer. Even if we are related, I cannot let you commit any more crimes! No more life will be extinguished by your hands!" He got into a fighting stance. "You have one chance to defend yourself. Should you fail, I will personally kill you."

"You're nuts!" Kurtis exclaimed. "Shane, a murderer? Yeah right! Who do you think you are, accusing him of something like that?"

"I know my brother!" Shawn said with a glare. "You met him, what, a few days ago? I've been with him for much longer than that! So don't even pretend to think you have more knowledge about this!"

Kurtis was about to protest again, but Shane held up a hand. "Please, don't. This is my fight." Shane walked towards Shawn, stopping a short distance away, and fell into his own stance. "I do not want to hurt you, Shawn. But if this is what you want, I will go with it."

"It is what I want," Shawn said, eyes narrowed. "For the sake of our memories, I will do a favor and finish you off quickly."

"Very well. But I ask that you do not fight with them," Shane said, indicating to the rest of the group.

"Why would I? If they committed crimes, their sentences can be carried out by another. I am responsible for you alone. If they do not interfere, they will have no conflict from me," Shawn stated.

"Hey! You think I'm just about to stand back and let you try to kill Shane? If so, you're going to be really disappointed!" Jin shouted.

"Jin, I can handle this," Shane said, his calmness returning. "Let me fight him alone."

Jin bit his lip, but finally said, "All right. Go get him!"

Shane and Shawn faced each other for a few tense seconds, neither of them moving, until Shawn said, "You're as patient as I remember."

"You are the one who wishes to combat me. It is only fair you make the first move," Shane said.

"Then I shall!" Shawn suddenly charged forward, and swung with his fist at Shane's head.

Shane was ready for such an antic. He ducked at once, and made a strike of his own, aiming for Shawn's unprotected stomach. He missed as Shawn leapt back, who was still on balance despite his mistaken blow. Shawn swept his foot forward in the same movement, trying to knock Shane down, but Shane managed to leap over it. While in the air, Shane kicked out, and Shawn held up his arms to block the blow. When Shane landed, Shawn landed a punch to his chest which caused him to stagger back. He followed up with an uppercut, sending Shane on his back with a thud.

"Is that all you can do?" Shawn said as he advanced towards his fallen opponent.

Shane responded by using his arms to abruptly spring from the ground to land a solid kick. Shawn staggered back with a grunt, and Shane used the opportunity to return to his feet and take a swing with his left fist. Shawn barely managed to deflect it.

"Seems like you've had a good teacher," Shawn spat as he returned the attack.

Shane did not respond as he dodged to the side.

"Though I have no idea how you can be so good. After all, that injury should have disabled you." Shawn suddenly punched forward.

Shane reacted by instinct, thrusting his right arm up and holding it out to block. As he did, Shawn grabbed his wrist. He looked astonished for a moment, and then grim again. "Now I see. So that's what you did! Nice work, hiding the evidence of your crime!" He then punched forward with his free hand.

Before he could hit, a sudden gale broke the two of them apart, throwing them both to the ground. The brothers staggered upright, looking completely confused.

"Please, Master Shawn, no more!"

They turned to see what looked like a young girl standing there. She wore a brown, hooded robe with a green shirt and blue skirt underneath it. Her green hair was tied back in a ponytail, and her green eyes were filled with worry. A staff with a crystal was held in her hands, and a small, yellow, limbless dragon flew beside her.

Courtney looked especially surprised. "That's Wind Spirit User-Wynn. She must be his Soul Monster."

Shawn glanced at the girl. "Wynn?"

"This isn't right!" she said, shaking her head with her eyes closed. "You're brothers, you shouldn't be fighting!"

"Wynn, you know what he's done-" Shawn started to say.

"I know!" Wynn exclaimed. "And I still don't think it's right! Please, Master Shawn! I beg you… not to fight right now. You're letting your fury take over you... Give yourself time to think before you dedicate yourself to this."

Shawn was silent for a long moment, and then he turned to Shane again. "Consider yourself lucky. Wynn has never asked anything of me, so I will grant her request. But the next time we meet, I will be the one to end your life."

"Shawn…" Shane said, eyes reflecting a deep hurt.

Shawn turned his back to him. "Wynn, let's go."

Wynn nodded, looking relieved. "Yes, Master Shawn." She quickly followed him back into the forest.

Once they were gone, Kurtis exploded, "What a jackass! I don't care what he thinks Shane did, he's got no right to act like that!"

"Calm down," Leigh said. "He's gone now."

"That was quite something," Lance said. "You're a great fighter, Shane."

Shane kept staring at where Shawn had left before returning to the group. "I'm sorry you had to see that. I didn't want to get anyone involved in my problems."

"Why was he acting like that?" Kurtis asked. "What did you do that made him so angry?"

Shane looked away. "I… I can't say."

"Of course you can! You can trust us, we're your friends!" Kurtis said.

"It doesn't matter if we're friends or not," Ace said with a sharp edge to his tone. "There are some secrets that nobody wants to share. If he wants to tell us, he will in his own time. Until then, shut up about it."

"You don't have to be so blunt!" Kurtis snapped in response.

"I want you to get the idea through your head that this is none of our business. It's Shane's, so leave him alone," Ace said, arms crossed.

"I hate to have to say it, but he's right," Chasity stated. "If we are his friends, we'll trust Shane with this."

Kurtis hesitated, and then nodded. "All right. Sorry, Shane."

"It's fine. I'm sorry, I just…" Shane shook his head. "I'll explain later."

"Sounds good to me," Lance said. "We should continue to the lake shore."

"Right!" Dennis exclaimed. "Let's go! I'll race you there, Jin!"

"Huh? Did you say something?" Jin asked, snapping out of a trance state.

Dennis looked where Jin had been staring, then back, and grinned mischievously. "It's Wynn, isn't it?"

"What are you talking about?" Jin asked.

"You like her! And why wouldn't you? You're both wind freaks and she's cute, so you like her!" Dennis said.

"Hey! I do not!" Jin said before chasing Dennis around. "Take that back!"

"Um… if Jin and Wynn got together… would that be considered incest?" Kurtis wondered.

He yelped as Leigh backhanded him. "That's not something I needed to hear!"

While the chaos was occurring, Shane approached Ace and said, "Thanks for what you said."

"Hey, no problem. I understand what you're going through," Ace said, smiling slightly. "I've had some rough spots in my life as well."

"Yeah…" Shane turned back as Chasity spoke.

"Okay, enough with this nonsense! We're moving forward!"

"You heard her, we're moving forward!" Dennis shot ahead with Jin in hot pursuit. The group soon followed, with a couple of exasperated sighs.

To be continued…


	10. A Long Grudge

Good gosh almighty. I'm sorry for how long this took, but I've been having a terrible time of things. Besides preparing to move, I have had three loved ones die (all for different reasons) and my appendix removed. I think that gives me an excuse at least this once, right? It should also be noted that unlike the next two (and final) arcs in this series, this arc is not completely planned out. I have to finish planning things before I can post chapters at times. Hopefully this will be fixed soon.

Also, happy birthday Epyon. Complete coincidence that his birthday is the same day I'm posting this, but hey.

**Chapter Ten: A Long Grudge**

By the time they arrived at the lake shore, they found Jin wrestling with Dennis, apparently trying to teach him a lesson for his prankish remarks. What drew everyone else's attention was the crystal clear water that stretched ahead. The high noon sky reflected off it like a mirror, giving a dazzling impression.

"It's beautiful," Leigh said in awe.

"It's hard to believe that gates to light and dark areas exist in this lake," Lance remarked.

"Hard indeed. When I first saw it, I could barely believe it myself." Shane spoke lightly, as if seeing the lake had made him forget the fight he had taken part in.

"Doesn't look like there's anyone else here though," Courtney said.

"Who cares? Let's play!" Angela said before running towards the lake.

Leigh shook her head. "I hope she can swim."

"It'd be pretty sad if the guardian of Teknisk Wereld could be taken out by throwing her into a lake," Kurtis joked.

"She makes the perfect Guardian," Leigh said dryly. "Anyone trying to defeat her would soon be running in terror from her high-pitched, never-ending voice."

"It could be a lot worse," Kurtis said. "Just play a couple of video games with young girls that have voice acting. I can give some examples…"

Courtney cut him off. "Don't. You'll bore the rest of us to tears."

"Not me!" Jin protested. "Video games are awesome! I keep telling Shane to get some, but all he does is go off and read!"

"If you think he's bad, you should see Will," Lance said. "He'd literally take books into Teknisk Wereld."

Jin shivered. "I don't know how his Soul Monster can stand it."

"He releases his energy by exploding kitchens. I wish I was kidding," Leigh said with a sigh.

"…I totally want to meet him now," Dennis said.

Lance yanked him out of the air. "Fat chance, if it means you'll take lessons from him."

"So you know Will personally?" Shane asked. "I guess it makes sense, if your parents are friends of his."

Jin gave him a blank look. "Their parents are friends with Will?"

Ace laughed at his confusion. "Looks like your mind was out to lunch yesterday. Leigh and Kurtis dropped more than enough hints to say their parents are Hope and Max Drigger."

"Plot twist!" Jin exclaimed as Arcadia gave him a doubtful look.

"I can only assume that means you're Max's sister, Chasity," Shane directed to her. "Lance's name was mentioned at the very end of Hope's last book, so he must be Draken and Kisara's son. Courtney's name was said as well, so she'd be Brandi and Matt's daughter."

"I'm surprised you remembered the two of us," Courtney said with Lance nodding.

"And Angela played such a large roll that anyone would recognize her name. Speaking of which…" He called towards her, "Angela! Don't go too deep into the lake!"

They looked to see that Angela was wading into the water. She waved cheerfully in response. "I'm okay! I lived in water for a long time!"

"Freak with a capital… every letter in the word," Kurtis muttered.

Ignoring him, Chasity said, "We've seen the lake, and there's nobody here. I suggest we move on."

"I guess we have more important things to do than swim," Lance agreed.

"All right, who volunteers to get Angela? I'll be the first to say 'not it'," Ace said.

Before anyone could respond, a torrent of water came from the sky. The liquid formed itself into a sphere, wrapping completely around all of them. Epsilon had the worst reaction to it as he became completely unable to move. Everyone else was caught by surprise and barely realized what had happened until water replaced air in their mouths.

Courtney took action first by swimming to one side of the sphere and pressing her hand against it. The water did not give way, and she gestured to the others, indicating that she thought them trapped.

A disoriented voice came from outside the liquid. "That was certainly easy. Now all I have to do is sit here and watch you drown. It should only take about thirty more seconds… enough time to think your prayers, if nothing else."

Though she sounded different underwater, they were able to make out Angela's words as well. "Hey! Let them go, you mean lady!"

"Who are you supposed to be? Children aren't allowed in Teknisk Wereld. Leave, or I'll kill you too," the voice snapped.

"No! It's my job to protect them, and I will!"

A blinding flash engulfed them while the water turned incredibly hot for less than a second. They then found themselves lying on the ground with torched grass surrounding them. There was little time to marvel at this though, for they celebrated their freedom by unceremoniously coughing up all the water accidently ingested.

"I never want to go through that again," Lance managed to say afterwards.

"What saved us?" Leigh asked while looking around.

Her eyes focused on the scene ahead. Angela stood there, her hair raised like snakes ready to strike. Another small girl stood beside her. She wore a black dress, white stockings, and black shoes, along with a black hat that had a large rim. Her long, blonde hair curled at the ends, and her light blue eyes chilled Leigh to look at. They showed no emotion whatsoever, merely staring at the enemy that stood before them.

The woman who had been responsible for the attack kept her black cloak draped over her shoulder. That and the orb of fire around her neck identified her as a General of Hell. Her dark blue pants and light blue shirt went well with her blonde hair, which was tied back in a casual ponytail. Though her eyes matched her shirt, they appeared darker from bitterness. Like the others they had encountered, she was clad in chains.

Her Soul Monster resembled a man with a green skirt and a spear. He had wild black hair and yellow, pupil-less eyes that stared blankly ahead. Though his appearance was threatening, he made no moves to attack.

As the group stared, Courtney said, "Can someone explain what just happened?"

"It seems this brat's Soul Monster saved you," the woman growled.

"Soul Monster? Angela has a Soul Monster?" Kurtis said in disbelief.

"I don't recall her having one," Shane responded as he stood. The others followed his lead.

"I am the Soul Monster of this one called Angela," the girl said flatly. "Though I am a Fire Sorcerer, you may refer to me as Sera."

"But that doesn't even make sense!" Leigh protested. "Angela's-"

Petra cut her off. "Does she have a soul?"

Leigh blinked. "Well, I guess…"

"Then she can have a Soul Monster. Not a difficult concept, is it?" Petra shrugged. "Not that I know how she got a card for one."

Dennis spoke up. "Wait a minute. A Fire Sorcerer got rid of a water trap?"

"I don't understand how she destroyed my Water Spirit Technique-"Aoi"," the woman said harshly. "It shouldn't be able to be destroyed without support cards!"

"My fire's strength was enough to evaporate the water," Sera stated.

"…What? That shouldn't even be possible!" Kurtis exclaimed.

"Can we just say a wizard did it? That lady doesn't look too happy about us," Jin said.

"My name is Aurora, and I have been sent to kill you all," the woman declared. "My ambush may have failed, but my deck will not." She pointed at Courtney. "You, duel me!"

"Huh? Why me?" Courtney asked.

Grimacing, Aurora said, "You resemble one that I loathe. Crushing you is the closest I can come to defeating her!"

"That's pretty lousy reasoning," Kurtis said.

"It may be, but I'll accept," Courtney said. "I'm one of the only ones that hasn't dueled yet, so I should do my share of the work."

"I could duel instead," Leigh suggested. "I haven't either."

"Yeah, but you don't have a Soul Monster," Courtney reminded her.

Leigh looked away. "Yeah…" _Even Angela has one now. What's taking mine so long?_

"Angela hasn't either, but she may not even remember how to," Shane said.

"Then it's settled." Courtney stepped forward. "Naomi, are you up for it?"

"O-oh… y-yes… I'll d-do my best!" Shaking out her wet feathers, Naomi stood beside Courtney.

"I have Visser, The Legendary Fisherman as my Soul Monster," Aurora stated. "Let's begin!"

Watching from the shadows of a tree, Larka murmured to herself, "Aurora? She doesn't seem familiar, yet… those chains look like the ones Robin had. What's going on here?"

Courtney: 8000

Aurora: 8000

"Seeing as this duel never should have happened, it's only right I go first," Aurora said.

Courtney sighed. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I miss Robin."

Ignoring her, Aurora said, "I summon Mermaid Knight (1500/700) and lay two cards down. Get your turn over with."

"I'll try to make it quick," Courtney said. "I summon Newt (1900/400) and attack your Mermaid Knight!"

"You think I'd be stupid enough to not have a trap down? I activate Gravity Bind!" The Newt was pulled to the ground just before it could slice apart the Mermaid Knight. "All monsters at level four or higher cannot attack now."

"Isn't Mermaid Knight a level four monster?" Lance asked.

"I'm sure she has some way around it," Chasity said, rolling her eyes. "They always do."

"Probably," Courtney agreed. "I lay one card down and end my turn."

"This is what I was waiting for!" Aurora announced. "I play The Legendary City Atlantis!"

"Atlantis? What does that-AUGH!" Courtney was promptly bowled over by a wave of water that engulfed her and Naomi. They soon emerged from it, sputtering but unharmed.

"I remember that one," Shane said. "It's a field magic card that is treated as Sea. It raises all Water Main-Types' stats by 200."

"Except it also lowers the levels of all Water Main-Types by one," Ace said. "That'd explain why she used Gravity Bind."

Courtney wrung out her hair. "For some reason, I really dislike this card, despite having never seen it before."

Still hiding, Larka shook her head. "I'm glad Brandi isn't here to see this." She had no way of knowing that at that moment, back in the real world, Brandi was currently wondering to herself why she felt a sudden urge to break something.

"And don't think you'll be able to destroy Atlantis," Aurora warned. "I play Field Barrier! Now field magic cards cannot be destroyed, nor can another one be played. Then I summon Seazarion. (1800/800) Due to Atlantis acting as Sea, both his and Mermaid Knight's stats increase by 200. (1700/900) (2000/1000) Since both are now counted as level threes, I am free to begin my assault. Seazarion attacks!"

"I can't stop that," Courtney said, watching her Newt be crushed to death by the giant, red serpent. "Though Newt's effect does lower your monster's stats by 500, due to being destroyed by it." (1500/500)

"That doesn't make a difference. Mermaid Knight attacks you directly!"

"I'm not letting you get away with this one!" Courtney flipped over her trap card. "I activate Dimensional Wall! Any damage I would have taken is instead dealt to you."

The Mermaid Knight sliced into the wall that appeared, and Aurora hissed as a gash spread across her chest. "No matter. Mermaid Knight can attack twice when Sea is out. She hits you this time!" Another slash was dealt, this time to Courtney.

Courtney: 6200

Aurora: 6300

Trying to ignore the pain, Courtney said, "I set a monster in defense and lay a card down."

"Too scared to try fighting back?" Aurora taunted. "I'll place a card down and attack with Seazarion!"

"I'm not going down that easily!" Courtney declared. "I activate Itaqua's Gale! All face-up monsters are forced to change positions, meaning each of yours go into defense!"

Aurora smirked. "Stalling? It won't get you anywhere. I switch my monsters back to attack mode and end my turn."

"I needed this monster to survive," Courtney said. "I flip over Blade Fly. (600/700) It lowers the attacks of all Earth Main-Types by 400, but that's not what I kept it alive for. Blade Fly's main function is to raise all Wind Main-Types' attacks by 500! (1100/700) Now, I summon Sonic Duck! (1700/300) Due to Blade Fly, it's powerful enough to take your Mermaid Knight down!" (2200/300)

Ace raised an eyebrow. "A duck?"

"Not just a duck, a duck with a bucket on its head!" Kurtis said.

"I always loved seeing Courtney play this monster against new opponents. They have no idea what she's doing with it," Lance said.

Aurora seemed unimpressed. "So it's stronger. Big deal! It still can't attack due to Gravity Bind."

Courtney grinned. "The great thing about Sonic Duck is that, despite having 1700 attack, it's level three. That means he's free to attack, and he will!"

The duck rushed forward and pecked through the mermaid. As she vanished, a water tornado appeared in front of Aurora to defend her. She laughed at Courtney's stunned expression. "You may have caught me off guard, but I still had a trump card! My Tornado Wall can only be activated while Sea is on the field, and it's destroyed if Sea leaves the field, but it's completely worth using. Any damage done to me when one of my monsters attacks is reduced to zero!"

"That'll be annoying in the long run. At least I wasn't counting on getting much damage out of that attack," Courtney said. "I'm done."

"So Courtney runs a deck based around the Wind Main-Type?" Shane asked Lance.

"That's right. I asked her why once, and she said it was because she loved the sea breeze," Lance said.

Dennis raised an eyebrow. "What? That's her reason?"

"It works for her," Lance said before turning back to the duel.

"Your little surprise has only managed to destroy one of my monsters," Aurora said. "I summon another Seazarion, and then I activate Aqua Chorus! This raises the stats of all monsters with the same name by 500, meaning my Seazarions benefit nicely. (2000/1000) (2500/1500) One will attack Blade Fly, and the other will destroy your silly duck!"

Courtney winced as she watched the two Seazarions squeeze her monsters to death, and as she saw her Life Point counter go down.

Courtney: 4500

Aurora: 6300

"We're in a tough spot," Courtney said. "Naomi, do you have an ability that can help us out?" When she did not receive a response, she glanced back. "Naomi?"

Naomi stood still, her only action being to tremble. She softly stammered, "I… I… I…"

"Now we have a Soul Monster that can't even use a Deck Master ability," Petra said in disgust. "I've never seen such a useless thing."

Covering her eyes, Naomi whimpered, "I-I'm sorry…"

Before Petra could say more, Arcadia spoke up. "There's no need to be so harsh. Every Soul Monster has their own personality as well. They can't all be as bold as you."

"What, you're saying she isn't useless?" Petra said.

"She will get over it in her own time. It will take longer if you keep putting her down though," Arcadia stated, undisturbed by her piercing glare.

"Wow, he's actually arguing with Petra. I never thought I'd see someone brave enough to do that," Kurtis whispered to Leigh.

"He's probably oblivious to what she's capable of," Leigh muttered back.

Naomi was still upset, so Courtney said, "He's right. I'm sure you'll be able to help soon."

"T-thank you…" Naomi said.

Aurora sighed. "Are you going to take your turn?"

Courtney drew a card at that prompt, and was clearly relieved. "I summon Harpy Lady 3! (1300/1400) Her name counts as Harpy Lady, so that means I can play Ten Thousand Reflections! When I have a Harpy Lady on the field, I can special summon a Harpy Lady or a Harpy Lady Triplets from my hand or deck. I'll take a Harpy Lady Triplets from my deck!" She found one and placed it on her Duel Disk, causing the three harpies to appear with screeches. (1950/2100)

"Impressive looking, but they're not strong enough to destroy my Seazarions," Aurora pointed out. "And that's even if they could attack."

"That's why I'm going to play Triangle Ecstacy Spark! Until this turn's end phase, my Harpy Lady Triplets have 2700 attack, you can't activate trap cards, and any trap cards you have on the field are negated. (2700/2100) They attack the stronger Seazarion!"

Aurora snarled as she watched the triplets claw apart her serpent, especially when she saw her other Seazarion lose power from it. (1500/500)

Courtney: 4500

Aurora: 6100

"I'm done." At those words, the triplets lost the brief surge of power they had held. (1950/2100)

"I'll take care of those annoying birds later," Aurora snapped. "For now, your Harpy Lady 3 is far too vulnerable to pass up. I attack her with Seazarion!"

Courtney: 4300

Aurora: 6100

Despite losing her monster, Courtney looked pleased. "Big mistake. When a monster battles Harpy Lady 3, it can't attack again for two turns."

"Annoying, but I can always summon more," Aurora said.

"You can, so that's why I'll set a monster in defense," Courtney said. "Then I switch my Harpy Lady Triplets to defense. Go ahead."

"I'll bypass your walls entirely," Aurora said. "I summon Water Configuration Bakross MK-3. (1500/1300) It gets powered by Atlantis, and it gains an ability while Sea is out that allows me to attack directly. (1700/1500) It will attack you!"

Courtney gasped in pain as the machine slammed into her, nearly toppling her over.

Courtney: 2600

Aurora: 6100

"Just a bit more of that and you're dead," Aurora stated.

Courtney smiled. "Good thing it won't get the chance. I flip over Tornado Bird!" (1100/1100)

"It looks useless," Aurora said.

"Not in this case, it isn't. When reverse summoned, it allows me to return two magic or trap cards to your hand! That means I can get rid of Atlantis and Gravity Bind!"

"What? No!" Aurora yelled as her Tornado Wall exploded and her sea vanished. Her monsters became weaker from the loss of their habitat. (1300/300) (1500/1300)

"You can't even play Atlantis again due to your own card," Courtney said triumphantly. "I switch my Triplets to attack mode, and sacrifice Tornado Bird for Monstrous Bird of the Valley of Mists! (2400/1400) Monstrous Bird attacks Seazarion, and Triplets attack MK-3!"

The bird screamed as it tore apart the serpent. Along with the screeches of claws against metal, the battle caused the watchers to cover their ears.

Courtney: 2600

Aurora: 4550

"I'm not done yet!" Aurora said, but her voice had lost its strength. "I play Rainbow Colored Fish (1800/800) and lay a card down…"

Courtney took advantage of her loss of morale. "Gravity Bind, right? You won't be able to use it, since I can summon Eagle Eye! (1300/1200) When he's normal summoned successfully, no trap cards can be activated. Then I play Raise Dead for Blade Fly, who raises all of my monster's stats! (2450/2100) (2900/1400) (1800/1200) (1100/700) Monstrous Bird attacks your fish, and then the others attack directly!"

"No! I can't lose!" Aurora shouted before being swamped by Courtney's four monsters.

Courtney: 2600

Aurora: 0

"I don't want to go back! My husband… I have to find my husband… Don't take me back!" Aurora wailed one last time before vanishing, along with her Soul Monster.

The silence in response to this was broken by an unfamiliar voice. "What the heck is going on here?"

…

Zack watched as Max shifted through his papers. He stopped and sighed, glancing up. "Thanks for coming quickly."

"What's the problem?" Zack asked.

"Attacks from monsters were reported in the canyon area," Max explained. "I would investigate it myself, but I'm way too busy here. Think you can handle it?"

"I'll see what I can do. If I go directly there, I doubt it will take very long," Zack said.

"Probably not. I'll be waiting for your report," Max said.

Zack nodded and left the room. Max stared at the door for a moment before returning to work.

To be continued…


	11. Playing Around

I'm doing what I can to update more frequently. Hopefully I can keep this up.

**Chapter Eleven: Playing Around**

They looked to see the speaker was a teenage girl. Though they were in a warm area, she wore a long-sleeved, dark red jacket and blue jeans. The jacket was open in the front, revealing a white shirt under it, and her shoes were black. Her brown hair barely reached her shoulders, and her green eyes glared at them suspiciously.

Leigh responded first. "What do you mean?"

"I heard a racket loud enough to wake the dead!" the girl exclaimed. "Someone was screaming like they were being mutilated! So I want to know what happened."

The group glanced at each other uneasily before Lance spoke. "We met a woman who challenged her-" He pointed at Courtney. "-to a duel. She was so furious at losing that she threw a fit before logging out. You showed up immediately afterwards."

"Really." She did not phrase it as a question, instead challenging them to prove their statement.

Courtney was not about to tell her what had really happened though. "Really. So there's nothing to worry about."

Glancing at Angela, the girl said, "That's not the only suspicious thing about your lot. How is a young girl like her in Teknisk Wereld? There are age limits, you know."

"I'm the-" Angela's words turned into muffled protests when Leigh covered her mouth.

"She's testing a device that lets children visit Teknisk Wereld safely," Chasity stated. "I'm sure you've heard of that experiment before."

The girl crossed her arms. "I have, but I still doubt your claims. You're hiding something, aren't you?"

"Why would we be?" Shane asked.

"It didn't sound like someone losing a duel," she said. "More like someone was being bloodily murdered."

"That's ridiculous. People can't die in Teknisk Wereld," Courtney said.

"Yes, they can," the girl said scornfully. "I take it you never read a certain series of books by Hope Driger?"

Kurtis, who had been growing more annoyed with every comment she made, finally snapped at this. "Of course we read about our parents!"

This caught her completely off guard. "Huh?"

Leigh sighed, knowing it was useless to try and talk around what Kurtis had said. "My name is Leigh Driger, and that's my brother, Kurtis Driger. We're the children of Hope and Max Driger. She's Courtney Driger, but the daughter of Brandi and Matt Driger. That's Lance Drayfall, the son of Draken and Kisara Drayfall. She's Chasity Driger, our aunt. So that's what Kurtis was referring to."

The girl looked at them skeptically before nodding. "You don't seem to be lying about that. However…" She indicated to Lance. "He's the son of Draken and Kisara? The two masters of dragons had… this, as a son? He doesn't look nearly strong enough to be their child."

Dennis flew into her face, furious at what she had said. "He is their son! Why wouldn't he be? If you don't believe me, I'll fight you over it! Bring it on!" He stuck up his clawed fists in a fighter's stance.

Rather than being threatened, the girl burst out laughing. Lance covered his face with a hand while waiting for her to get her breath back. Gasping for air, she said, "A Baby Dragon? That's your Soul Monster?"

"I'm afraid so," Lance muttered barely loud enough for her to hear.

"And you expect me to believe you are their son? Even my Soul Monster is better than that shrimp!" She took out a card, causing a towering dragon to appear. Its scales shone red and black, and its claws were silver. Its black wings stretched out, revealing their lengthy size. Three silver horns crowned its face. Blank, white eyes stared directly at the group as it snarled.

"Holy crackers!" Jin exclaimed. "What is that thing?"

"My Soul Monster is a Death Vorstagalph. He's pretty strong, but I expected a Drayfall to have a better dragon than him." The girl smirked. "Looks like I was wrong."

Lance was able to hide his annoyance at her words, but Dennis did not even try. He flew up to the Death Vorstagalph and began punching at his face. "Oh, you want to fight? Try it, big guy! Gimme your best shot!"

The Soul Monster responded by slowly lifting an arm and gently swatting at Dennis. It sent him tumbling through the air with a yelp.

"I almost feel sorry for him," Kurtis remarked as Dennis sailed past them.

"Almost," Leigh agreed, still keeping her hand over Angela's mouth.

The girl snorted at Dennis' antics. "Brave, but foolish. Think things through before making empty threats."

Now thoroughly exasperated, Lance said, "Just who are you?"

"Kaida's my name," she answered.

"All right then," Lance said. "Kaida, did you come here to insult me all day? If you want to prove yourself superior to me for whatever odd reason you have, I'd be happy to duel you."

Kaida shook her head. "Duel? It'd be a waste of time. You aren't half the opponent I would hope to face."

"More like you're scared!" Dennis taunted, returning to Lance's side. "You know we're superior to you and don't want to be embarrassed!"

She flared up at that. "That's not true!"

"Then prove it!" Dennis said.

Their argument was interrupted by a shaking of the ground. The group looked downwards in confusion, while Kaida paled. She hit a button on her Duel Disk and vanished, along with her Soul Monster.

"Hey! You can't run just because of a little tremor!" Dennis protested.

"A little one? I can barely stand!" Leigh said.

The ground split open, and with yells of surprise, the group fell into the chasm. It sealed up once they were gone.

Larka ran to the area and looked around, shaking her head. "Gone… what happened? Are they…" She stopped, remembering an event that she had experienced years ago. "That shouldn't be possible, but if it is… Then they should be all right." She went to hide again, hoping that her theory meant they would return soon.

…

Angela's shrill voice cut through the shrouds of darkness that surrounded everyone else. "Wow, we've shrunk!"

They opened their eyes to see that they were on a huge book. The text alone was as big as one of them. While they were on the right side, the left had a picture of many buildings. The air around them changed to various colors with no sign of rhyme or reason, giving an eerie feeling to the area.

"Either Angela's right, or we're on the biggest book ever," Leigh said as they examined their surroundings.

"What happened? All I remember is the ground opening…" Lance said.

Dennis snorted at that. "We were about to show Kaida our awesomeness, but she ran like a coward, leaving us to fall down here!"

"There's no use in complaining about her," Ace stated. "Whatever her problem was, she's gone now."

"We have to find a way out. Any ideas?" Shane asked.

Courtney frowned. "This seems familiar… I think I have heard of this area before."

"Really? Where?" Jin said.

Her response was cut off by a gleeful giggling. A small green alligator with an axe leapt out of the left page, and beside him came a girl who looked to be around Angela's age. She was clad in a pink dress that had lace, white tights, white gloves, and shiny black shoes. Her long, brown hair fell to her sides in two pigtails, and her green eyes held a trickster's glint.

"Ah, guests at last! I was afraid I'd never have any again." The girl scowled as she examined them. "But I didn't even get the person I wanted. Drat!"

"The person you wanted?" Leigh inquired.

"I sensed someone familiar, which is why I opened a passage. I must have caught all of you instead." Her grimace turned into a grin. "But that's okay! We can still play!"

"Someone familiar…" Courtney mused.

Everyone else was far more preoccupied by the girl. Lance said, "Who are you?"

"My name's Cally! This is Ally, my friend!" she replied. Ally snickered at their bewildered expressions.

"Cally… I think I recall that name," Shane commented. "Wasn't your realm supposed to be sealed after you lost in a certain duel?"

"It was, but a lady came and said that if I killed a bunch of people, she'd unseal the book!" Cally put her hand to her chin. "I agreed, since she said that instead of killing them, I could instead trap them here forever to have some new friends!" She brightened. "Come to think of it, her description of the people fits all of you!"

"Oh great," Leigh groaned.

"Today's not our lucky day," Ace muttered.

"If you think we're just going to stay here-" Chasity started.

Angela cut her off abruptly by stomping over to Cally and saying, "You're a selfish little brat!"

Cally's eyes widened. "What did you just call me?"

"A selfish little brat! You can't make friends by locking them in a giant book!" Angela ranted. "You have to treat them nicely and respect what they want, or they won't like you! And with how you're acting, nobody would like you!"

"Oh yeah? Well nobody would like you either, you stupid idiot!" Cally retorted.

"I'm not stupid or an idiot! Can you do multiplication yet?" Cally remained silent. "Thought so!"

"How'd we get into this situation?" Jin grumbled.

Naomi hid behind Courtney. "I d-don't like a-arguments…"

"Me either. Especially high-pitched ones," Leigh complained, covering her ears.

"I may not be able to multiply, but I'm an expert card player! You don't even have a deck!" Cally said.

"Oh yeah?" Angela held out her arm, causing a miniature Duel Disk to appear on it with a deck inserted. "Then what'd you call this?"

"No fair!" Cally flung out her arm, causing her Duel Disk to unfold. "Fine then! I'll show you who's superior through a duel!"

"You'd better be ready to lose!" Angela said as hers opened too.

The group watched in disbelief from the sidelines. Ace eventually broke their silence by saying, "She can duel?"

"I wasn't sure if she'd be able to in this state, but it looks like it," Shane said.

"I hope she's as good now as she was before," Courtney said. "When she was an adult, she dueled well. Now…"

"Let us give her a chance," Arcadia suggested. "If she truly is the Guardian of Teknisk Wereld, I do not see why her dueling powers would decrease."

"That's true," Lance agreed. "We'll leave it to her."

Cally whistled. "Ally, get ready to help!" Her alligator jumped next to her, snickering.

"I've got a helper too! Sera, let's go!" Angela said.

"Affirmative." Sera took her place next to Angela, expression blank as usual.

Angela: 8000

Cally: 8000

"You think I'm selfish? Well, you're wrong! And to prove it, you can go first!" Cally said.

"You'll regret it! I summon Birdman (1800/600) and lay a card down!"

Ace raised an eyebrow. "Birdman?"

"She probably didn't change her deck that much," Shane said. "I remember that card from the books."

"We'll know once we see her trump card," Chasity stated.

"Your silly Birdman won't stop me!" Cally swore. "I play Toon Index! It allows me to get a card from my deck with the word 'Toon' in it. I get Toon World and play it!"

Angela gave the book that popped up an unimpressed look. "What's that do?"

"It costs me 1000 Life Points to play."

Angela: 8000

Cally: 7000

Angela stared at her. "…That's it?"

Cally laughed. "It has other benefits, like this! I summon Toon Masked Automan! (900/1400) Toon monsters usually can't attack when I summon them, but Ally lets them attack right away. When I have Toon World out, they can attack directly! So my Toon Masked Automan will go around your Birdman to attack!"

The wacky monster slipped past Angela's defenses to smack her. She yelped at the blow, despite looking unharmed.

Angela: 7100

Cally: 7000

"That's not fair!" Angela said, pouting.

"It totally is fair! If Toon World is destroyed, my monsters go with it, so they aren't cheap! Also, whenever my Toon Masked Automan does damage to you, I get to draw a card." Cally did so. "I'll lay one down and end my turn!"

"I'll still win, even if your monsters are unfair!" Angela said. "I summon Burning Bird (1000/800) and attack Automan with Birdman!"

"You can't hit my Toons that easily!" Cally told her. "I activate a trap, Toon Defense! When you attack a Toon of level four or lower, I can choose to be attacked directly instead!"

Angela blinked. "That's going to hurt you more. Not that I care! Burning Bird attacks too!"

"I'll take that attack directly too!"

Angela: 7100

Cally: 4200

"I'm done then," Angela said.

"You'll regret facing me now! I play Cost Down! By discarding a card-Toon Mermaid this time-all monsters in my hand have their levels lowered by two! That lets me bring out Toon Demon Summon without a sacrifice!" (2500/1200)

"That thing looks stupid," Angela remarked as the cartoonish demon appeared.

"No it doesn't! You're just jealous that my monsters are better than yours!" Cally taunted. "I attack directly with both my Toons!"

The Toon Masked Automan did little damage again, but the Toon Demon Summon's electricity attack was far more damaging. Angela cried out as she was hit, but still stood strong afterwards.

Angela: 3700

Cally: 4200

"You're going to regret not destroying my monsters!" Angela declared. "Because I'm going to sacrifice them for Phoenix God of Nephthys!" (2400/1600)

The onlookers watched in wonder as the golden phoenix emerged and gave a piercing shriek. Cally appeared slightly nervous, yet tried to keep a bold front. "So what? It's not strong enough to defeat my Toon Demon Summon!"

"It can destroy your Automan though! Phoenix attacks!"

Cally winced as her Automan was burned away. "I don't like losing him, but I can't afford to take that hit directly."

Angela: 3700

Cally: 2700

"Now it's time for my master plan!" Angela announced. "I play Iron Cage of Nightmares, so that neither of us can attack for two turns! Then I activate my trap card, Destroying Ring! It destroys my Phoenix and does 1000 damage to both of us!"

"What? But that's ridiculous!" Cally was cut off by smoke flowing from the Destroying Ring, causing her to cough.

Angela: 2700

Cally: 1700

"You'll see what I'm doing next turn," Angela said with a grin.

Catching sight of some of the group member's doubtful looks, Shane said, "It was a smart move. Just watch."

"I can't attack, but I'll summon Toon Gemini Elf (1900/900) to increase my forces!"

"It won't save you from this! My Phoenix returns!" As she said that, the beast returned in a flare of flames. It flapped its mighty wings, causing their magic and trap slots to become encased in fire.

"What? How'd that happen?" Cally exclaimed.

"When Phoenix is destroyed by a card effect, it returns on my next standby phase. If that's successful, it destroys all magic and trap cards on the field!" Angela said triumphantly.

"But that means… My monsters!" Cally cried as her Toon Gemini Elf and Toon Demon Summon exploded.

"Without your Toon World, you're defenseless!" Angela said. "And my Iron Cage is gone too, allowing me to attack!"

"There is another benefit," Sera stated, holding her hand out. A fireball emerged from it to hit Cally.

"Ow! What was that for?" Cally demanded.

"For each magic or trap card on my master's field that is destroyed, you lose 500 Life Points," Sera said.

Angela: 2700

Cally: 1200

"Wow… I'll need to make use of that later," Angela said. "For now, Phoenix destroys you!"

"Eek!" Cally covered her face as the Phoenix rained fire upon her. It eventually cleared, leaving Cally to fall to her knees.

Angela: 2700

Cally: 0

"I hope I'm not the only one who's grateful that she won," Courtney said.

"You aren't, trust me," Kurtis assured.

"That'll teach you to mess with us!" Angela said.

To their surprise, instead of Cally arguing back, she burst into tears. "Whaaaaa! You're a big meanie!"

"Huh? No I'm not!" Angela protested, but Cally was not listening.

"I just wanted to have some friends! I've been stuck here forever and ever and Ally's the only one here! So please… don't leave me!" Cally continued to weep, much to the discomfort of everyone present.

Luckily for them, Angela handled it by approaching her and saying, "You have to understand that you can't make friends by trapping them here. But I know what it feels like to be alone."

"You do?" Cally asked.

"Yeah. That's why I'll be your friend. I'll come and play with you whenever I can." Angela held up her index finger. "But only on one condition! You aren't going to try bringing anyone else down here against their will. Okay?"

Cally was speechless for a moment, and then she bounced back up with a huge smile. "Okay! Thank you!"

"Wow, I'm surprised Angela's up for that," Leigh said.

"She's got a lot of energy," Lance replied. "I'm sure they'll be able to keep up with each other."

"Loneliness…" Ace muttered, but he said nothing else.

"So can you help us get out of here?" Angela asked her.

"Sure! I'll look forward to you coming back!" The group began to float upwards without warning. Their last sight was Cally waving to them.

…

The only sound Zack could hear were his footsteps as he walked around the canyon area. He stopped at a ledge that overlooked the deep chasm and frowned. "It's too quiet here. Max said there were monster attacks… So where would they be?"

A noise, akin to a cannon firing, answered his question. He spun around in time to see a towering creature, but could make out nothing more before he was hit with a blast of energy. The force caused him to begin to fall, until he was out of sight of his assailants.

"One target down, several more to go," the black cloaked man muttered.

To be continued…


	12. Absolute Trust

See? I'm getting better at this!

**Chapter Twelve: Absolute Trust**

When the group came to, they were relieved to see themselves next to the lake shore. Kurtis summed up nearly all of their thoughts by saying, "Let's never do that again."

"Did you mean it when you said you'd go back to her?" Leigh asked Angela.

"Yep! But it can wait until we beat up the bad people!" Angela said.

"Beat up is putting it mildly," Lance muttered.

Courtney was silent, considering what Cally had said. _She felt someone familiar. The only two people who have met her before are Aunt Larka and Zack, so that means… Aunt Larka must be nearby! I doubt Zack could hide himself as well._ She gave a small, sly smile as she slipped a card towards her Duel Disk. _If she thinks she'll be able to find out what we're doing that easily, I'll have to prove her wrong._

"Look out, a wild monster!" Everyone spun around to see Courtney insert the card she had been holding. A white house made of tape sprang out of the ground next to a tree. A faint yelp of surprise could be heard from inside it.

"Wow, I didn't even see anything there," Leigh remarked.

"We don't have time to waste with wild monsters. Let's leave it there and head to our next location," Chasity stated.

"How about the canyon?" Lance suggested. "That's nearby, right?"

"And we haven't been there yet," Kurtis added. "Let's go!"

"No objections over here," Ace said, with Shane nodding.

"All right. It's this way." Chasity led them towards their next destination.

Inside the house, Larka had heard everything, but was unable to do much about it. Her limbs were caught by the sticky walls, leaving her helpless. "Fly Tape House… Did I give away my location that easily?" She began to try pulling her right arm free so that she could reach her Duel Disk. "I'll be able to get out of here, but it'll take a while. Hopefully they won't run into trouble before then…"

…

The ground soon became bare of grass, showing they were getting close to the canyon. The four newcomers looked on in amazement as the towering rock walls became visible. Angela also appeared excited about it, bouncing around the group while chattering. "This is where I first dueled! Some creepy guy with a mask tried to kill everyone, so I taught him a lesson!"

"By that, she means she killed him," Lance muttered, recalling what he had read.

"You didn't have to point that out!" Kurtis said sourly. "Now I'm going to be terrified every time she says she wants to teach us something!"

"We're about to arrive at the beginning of the chasm," Shane said, not having noticed their other conversation.

"The beginning?" Leigh inquired.

"Though it stretches out as far as the eye can see, two parts are referred to as the beginning and the end," Chasity explained. "They are the only sections where the bottom of the canyon is visible."

"I-it's t-that deep?" Naomi stammered, eyes wide.

"Sure is!" Jin said cheerfully. "So don't go falling in there!"

Naomi groaned, hiding her face in Courtney's shoulder. Courtney sighed and said, "You can fly, remember? There's nothing to worry about."

"O-oh… r-right…"

Petra rolled her eyes, but refrained from commenting. Kurtis spoke instead as they started going up a slope. "But the areas where it is visible are still really far down, right?"

"If you fall down any part of the chasm and hit the bottom, you're either dead or not human," Ace said bluntly.

Giving him a glare, Chasity said, "You'd log out, not die."

"Most of the time, yeah, but we don't know how the Enslaved have changed things," Ace pointed out.

"If they can fulfill the conditions of death duels, I'd assume the death barrier can't be taken for granted," Lance agreed.

By this point, they had arrived at the top of the slope, revealing the canyon that spread before them. Kurtis, Courtney, and Lance could only stare at the sight, while Leigh slowly stepped towards the edge for a better look. "You're right, I can see the bottom. But it's really far down…"

"P-please get away f-from there…" Naomi pleaded. "I-it's m-making me nervous t-to watch…"

"Don't worry, she's not about to fall!" Dennis assured her.

Despite that, Leigh took a few steps back. "To be honest, if I looked down there any longer, I'd feel sick."

"We should keep going," Lance said. "It doesn't look like there are any Enslaved here, but further along the chasm, there might be."

As if mocking his words, their hidden enemy chose that moment to make their move. Huge, green vines with thorns sprung from the ground to wrap themselves tightly around the group members. Most were too surprised to react, but Epsilon responded by trying to break free. Even his strength was unable to tear apart the plants. Anyone else who attempted to struggle was pierced painfully by the thorns.

"What's going on?" Courtney exclaimed. She tried to reach her Duel Disk, only to wince as she acquired more injuries.

"We've fallen for a trap," Shane stated, not attempting to move.

"Whoever it is sure doesn't have much courtesy," Ace said. "They could have at least let us been in a more comfortable position before attacking."

"That's the least of any enemy's concerns," Chasity snapped. "I was careless, not noticing someone nearby…"

Leigh had been most fortunate. Since she was still near the edge of the chasm, away from the group, only a couple of vines had made it to her. Her right leg was bound, but nothing else had been caught. She carefully began to pull at it, trying to wiggle free.

"This really stinks! Can't someone get us out of here?" Dennis whined.

Arcadia glanced at Sera. "Are you capable of burning these vines?"

"Yes. However, anyone trapped in them would be burned as well," Sera stated.

Jin grimaced. "Ugh! Let's think of another way."

Angela's hair had been whipping around frantically, trying to free her. She soon gave up and yelled, "Let us go, you jerk!"

Her words caused them to look at the two figures that had appeared. One was a woman who had lowered the hood of her white robe. She had long, blonde hair and brown eyes, along with a gold cross that hung around her neck. Black chains clung to her as well. The other, her Soul Monster, resembled a human with a blue t-shirt, matching shorts, a brown vest, and black wristbands. His brown bandanna hid his hair color from view and made his blank eyes hard to see. He carried a bow as tall as himself.

"I regret having to do this, but I cannot go against my orders," the woman said.

"Who are you?" Lance asked.

"My name is Heather. If you met any of the other Enslaved, you will realize that I too should be dead," she said, her eyes holding sorrow. "I wish I could return to where I came from…" Her chains glowed, causing her to gasp in pain. "I have no choice. You will all be slain now."

"You're not slaying us without a fight!"

Heather turned in surprise to see Leigh had broken loose from the vine restraining her. "You must have been out of range of my Ivy Wall." She gestured to her Soul Monster. "Ash, I am leaving this to you. Kill her."

He responded by lifting his bow, which had an arrow already notched in place. Leigh barely managed to duck in time to avoid the bolt he sent towards her.

"Sis!" Without thinking, Kurtis tried to lunge towards Heather, only to get several minor wounds for his troubles.

"He has not had time to warm up, but he will hit you soon enough," Heather stated. Ash's next arrow lodged into the ground beside Leigh's foot, and his third grazed her shirt sleeve as she stumbled aside.

_I can't keep this up… I don't even have time to find a support card to fight back… _Her eyes skimmed over her friends, all trapped. _But I have to do something to save them!_

A thought struck her. _There is a way! If I had my Soul Monster…_ She slipped her hand into her pocket, grabbing the card. It showed no signs of warmth, like others had reported when getting theirs. That did not disappoint her this time though. _I know you will help me._

Leigh stepped back as Ash aimed his next arrow. She continued retreating until at the very edge, one step from falling.

"Leigh! What are you doing?" Courtney exclaimed.

Ash drew back the arrow as Leigh calmly said, "I trust my Soul Monster." Then she let herself fall backwards, the arrow flying harmlessly above her.

"No!"

The word Kurtis shouted barely registered, for the card in her hand had begun to feel warm. Leigh spoke words that entered her mind at once. "Soar, steed of flames! Our guardian is needed!"

The group heard her cry before seeing a flash. From the gorge flew a white horse with wings made of fire. Its tail, mane, and ankles had flames as well, leaving a trail of embers where it flew. Leigh rode on its back, her hands passing through the flaring mane without even a burn. She did not have to give a command, for the pegasus knew what to do without instruction. It flapped its wings, sending a sheet of flames at the trapped group. The vines burned away, yet did not harm any of them in the process. Once they died down, it landed in front of them with Leigh dismounting.

"What… just happened?" Lance said in disbelief.

Jin stared at them, wide-eyed. "If anyone can explain that, I'd love to hear it too."

"Geez, don't scare me like that!" Kurtis said to Leigh.

She smiled in response. "Sorry. It worked out though, didn't it?"

"I see I am at a disadvantage now," Heather stated. "Ash can still attack, but he would only be able to earn a few kills before we would be brought down. Would you agree to a duel? It would reduce the bloodshed necessary."

"I'll accept your challenge," Leigh said, her Duel Disk unfolding. She looked at her Soul Monster. "You'll help, right?"

"Yes. I am Ellen, a Fire Wing Pegasus," she replied. "I will protect you and anyone you cherish with my life."

"It sure was worth the wait to see this," Courtney commented to the others.

"Save the best for last, right?" Ace said.

"That's one way of putting it," Lance said. "With her Soul Monster, Leigh should be able to win this without much trouble."

"Let's hope so," Arcadia stated.

"Hope can do it!" Angela declared.

"I don't think she'll ever learn the difference," Courtney muttered before turning her attention to the duel.

Leigh: 8000

Heather: 8000

"You may have the first turn. That is the only help I can provide," Heather said.

Leigh nodded. "I lay a monster and one other card down. Your turn."

"We'll see if your defenses can handle this," Heather said. "I summon Blood Orchis. (1700/1000) Its effect lets me special summon Death Dendol (300/2000) from my hand. I will then union them."

"Union them?" Leigh asked.

"Death Dendol has the ability to become an equipment card for Blood Orchis. After this, Blood Orchis will attack your monster!"

"My Reverse Girepanda (800/1600) is destroyed."

"Whenever Blood Orchis destroys a monster with Death Dendol equipped, a Magic Grass Token (800/800) is created." It appeared on her field next to her other monsters. "Now I can use this token for Ash's Deck Master ability. By sacrificing a Plant Sub-Type, he will destroy one magic or trap card on the field!"

Leigh prepared herself to counter that, but found there was no need to. Despite Heather's words, Ash had not moved at all.

"Ash? Why are you waiting?" she demanded. He remained still.

"Is he disobeying her?" Courtney wondered.

"I don't think so. It looks more like he doesn't understand what she's asking," Ace remarked.

Shane pondered his words for a moment. "Remember the other Enslaved? None of them asked their Soul Monsters to perform their Deck Master abilities. The ones we saw were all automatic."

"Automatic?" Kurtis echoed.

"I understand," Chasity said. "For effects like Dark Scythe's Soul Monster, they activated without any prompt. The duelist did not decide when they were used, they just occurred."

"Robin and Aurora never used their Deck Master abilities, and from what I remember, they were not automatic," Shane added. "Robin could negate traps, and Aurora could pay Life Points to negate certain magic cards. Neither was used unless the duelist wanted them."

"Okay, that's fair enough," Lance said. "But why is it that way?"

Heather broke into their discussion. "I have no idea what the problem is, but I don't have time to try figuring it out. You can take your turn."

"Even if his ability worked, it wouldn't have changed much," Leigh told her. "I flip over Forced Ejection Machine to send your token back to your hand!"

"When a token is sent back to the hand, it vanishes," Heather realized. "Essentially, you destroyed it. Not bad."

"I can destroy your other monsters as well," Leigh said. "I summon Berserk Gorilla (2000/1000) and attack Blood Orchis!"

"When Blood Orchis would be destroyed by battle, if Death Dendol is equipped to it, Death Dendol is destroyed instead." True to her words, the attached Death Dendol was torn apart by the crazed gorilla.

Leigh: 8000

Heather: 7700

"At least damage was done. That's all I can do for the moment."

"I'd best defend," Heather said. "I switch Blood Orchis to defense mode and place a monster. I'll also play a permanent magic card, World Tree." A gigantic tree tore free of the ground, towering over the duelists.

"World Tree?" Leigh asked.

"Every time a Plant Sub-Type is destroyed on the field, World Tree gets a Flower Counter," Heather stated. "I can remove them to get different effects based on how many are used. That's all for me."

"I don't like giving you Flower Counters, but I can't win without destroying your monsters," Leigh said. "I summon Death Kangaroo (1500/1700) and attack Blood Orchis with him! Then Berserk Gorilla attacks your defense monster!"

"You have destroyed my Lord Poison. (1500/1000) When it is destroyed in battle, I am allowed to special summon a Plant Sub-Type from my Cemetery that is not a Lord Poison. I'll bring Blood Orchis back in attack mode. In addition, I have two Flower Counters now."

Leigh frowned at the reappearing monster. "I'm done."

"I summon Gigant Cephalous. (1850/700) As long as he is face up, whenever a Plant Sub-Type is sent to the Cemetery, his attack raises by 200. I will attack Berserk Gorilla with Blood Orchis!"

"You're committing suicide to raise your monster's attack?" Leigh assumed. (2050/700)

"That, and to get an additional Flower Counter. I have three now. Gigant Cephalous attacks Berserk Gorilla! That ends my turn."

Leigh: 7950

Heather: 7400

"I don't have anything strong enough to defeat that," Leigh said worriedly. "I lay a monster in defense mode. I can't do much else."

Heather gave the card a suspicious look before saying, "Gigant Cephalous attacks your monster."

"You've hit my Quick Squirrel. (1000/100) When sent to the Cemetery by battle, I gain 1000 Life Points and can bring out as many cards with the same name as I want in face down defense mode. I'll get two more," Leigh said.

Leigh: 8950

Heather: 7400

"In that case, I will summon Botanity Girl (1300/1100) before ending my turn."

Leigh examined her hand, nodding to herself. "I summon Voltech Kong (1800/1000) and flip my Quick Squirrels over."

Heather raised an eyebrow. "What are you planning?"

"By doing this, I will benefit greatly from this instant magic card, March of a Hundred Beasts! It increases the attack strength of Animal Sub-Type monsters on my field by 200 times the amount of them I have on the field until the end of my turn. Since I have three Animal Sub-Types, they each get an increase of 600!" (2200/1000) (1600/100)

"Not bad," Heather admitted. "Are you going to attack?"

"Yes. Voltech Kong destroys Gigant Cephalous!" Once Heather's monster was gone, Leigh said, "When you take damage from him, you have to discard a number of cards from the top of your deck equal to the amount of Light Main-Types I have on the field. Since Voltech Kong is the only one I have, you discard one card."

"Very well. I lose my King of Faeries-Oberon."

"One of my Quick Squirrels will attack Botanity Girl, and the other will attack directly if you can't stop it."

"Though I can't, Botanity Girl's effect does activate," Heather said. "When she is sent to the Cemetery from the field, I can add a Plant Sub-Type with 1000 or less defense to my hand. I choose Rekunga."

Leigh: 8950

Heather: 5150

"I'm done," Leigh said. (1800/1000) (1000/100)

"So she runs an Animal deck?" Ace assumed from the sidelines.

"That's right. Sis wants to become a veterinarian when she grows up," Kurtis explained. "She's always liked animals."

"Animals and Plants? We need a druid to moderate this battle," Jin joked.

"Leigh may have the advantage right now, but she's not home free yet," Lance said. "I think Heather has something up her sleeve."

Heather proved his words true. "I have five Flower Counters right now. By removing three of them, I can special summon a Plant Sub-Type from my Cemetery. I will bring out King of Faeries-Oberon." (2200/1500) Roots came from the ground in a bundle, and unwrapped to reveal Oberon. "He increases the stats of Plant Sub-Types by 500 when in defense mode, but I prefer to keep him in attack mode for the time being."

Leigh groaned. "I set myself up for that one by using Voltech Kong…"

"After that, I summon Rekunga. (1700/500) He allows me to remove two Water Main-Types in my Cemetery from the game to special summon a Rekunga Token. I will do this by removing Lord Poison and Botanity Girl. (700/700) Then I play Fragrance Storm!"

"Talk about flower power," Kurtis muttered as a storm of petals wiped away her Rekunga Token.

"This magic card requires that I destroy a Plant Sub-Type in face up attack mode on my field. By doing so to my Rekunga Token, I can draw a card. If the card I draw is a Plant Sub-Type, I show it to you to draw one more card." Heather drew and showed her it. "Since I got Botanical Lion, I draw again. This also means that I get another Flower Counter, bringing my total to three."

Leigh winced. "That means you can special summon again."

"However, I will not. Instead, I attack your Voltech Kong with Oberon, and one of your Quick Squirrels with Rekunga!"

Though hurt by the strikes, the Quick Squirrel healed Leigh enough to make the damage barely noticeable.

Leigh: 8850

Heather: 5150

_At least I still have one monster. I can get out of this thanks to that…_ Leigh thought.

"To get rid of your other Quick Squirrel, I'll use another of World Tree's effects," Heather said. "By removing two Flower Counters, a card on the field is destroyed. I choose your only monster."

Leigh froze as the tree's roots sped towards the helpless squirrel. Just before they could hit, a wall of flames emerged around the squirrel, causing the roots to retreat hastily. All Leigh could do was stare at her Soul Monster in astonishment as the fires died down. "Did you do that?"

"Once per turn, you can pay 500 Life Points to activate my Deck Master ability," Ellen stated. "It will negate and destroy a card effect that targets an Animal Sub-Type on your field."

Leigh: 8350

Heather: 5150

"That's really useful." Leigh sighed in relief. "I thought I was in trouble for a minute there."

"Do not worry. I will do everything in my power to protect you," Ellen said, her orange eyes glittering with sincerity.

Leigh tried to respond, but found herself unable to speak. Heather took advantage of her silence to say, "I only have one Flower Counter left, so there is little else I can do. I will lay a card down and end my turn."

Recovering from her muteness, Leigh said, "I sacrifice my Quick Squirrel to summon Twin-Head Beast! (1700/1900) Then I play a magic card, Wild Burst! The Animal or Animal Warrior Sub-Type I use it on will be destroyed at the end of my turn. Yet it's worth it, since it adds that monster's defense stat to its attack! (3600/1900) Twin-Head Beast has the ability to attack twice, making this even more deadly! He attacks Oberon and Rekunga!"

Heather cringed as her monsters were bit in half by the fierce creature's bites. "I may earn two Flower Counters, but it was for a great price."

Leigh: 8350

Heather: 1850

"That's all I can do," Leigh said. Her Twin-Head Beast exploded at these words, leaving her defenseless.

"I could special summon a monster with my Flower Counters. Unfortunately, that would leave me unable to destroy any threats that you might come up with," Heather said. "Instead, I will summon Botanical Lion. (1600/2000) His attack power rises by 300 for every Plant Sub-Type I have on my field, including himself. (1900/2000) As a bonus, he cannot be taken control of while face up either. I will remove one Flower Counter to activate World Tree's final effect. It increases the stats of all Plant Sub-Types on the field by 400 until the end of my turn. (2300/2400) Botanical Lion attacks directly!"

Leigh did her best to suppress a cry of pain as the lion, powered by the tree's roots, clawed her stomach.

Leigh: 6050

Heather: 1850

"I will lay one card down," Heather concluded. (1900/2000) "Go ahead."

"I can't afford to leave your Botanical Lion out," Leigh said. "I summon Mad Dog of Darkness! (1900/1400) He'll attack your Botanical Lion, destroying them both!"

"It won't be that easy," Heather stated. "I activate my trap card, Plant Connection. It becomes an equip card for a Plant Sub-Type to raise their attack by 500." (2400/2000)

"So much for that idea…" Leigh muttered, watching her Mad Dog get ripped apart by the Botanical Lion. "I lay a card down and end my turn."

Leigh: 5550

Heather: 1850

"I summon Rigorous Reaper (1600/100) (2700/2000) and remove two Flower Counters to get rid of your face down card," Heather said.

Leigh flipped it over. "I'll chain it. My Emissary of Harmony causes all monsters to be unable to hurt me in battle for this turn!"

"I would rather do damage to you while I am able," Heather said. "I activate my own trap card, Pollinosis. By sacrificing a Plant Sub-Type, I can negate and destroy a magic, trap, summoning, or special summoning. I choose to get rid of Rigorous Reaper. Your Emissary of Harmony is useless." (2400/2000)

Leigh braced herself. "I'm open for attack…"

"Indeed. Botanical Lion attacks directly."

The second blow did not hurt as badly, but Leigh was still having trouble remaining upright from the accumulated damage.

Leigh: 2650

Heather: 1850

Heather considered her hand before saying, "I'm done."

"She's in bad shape," Courtney said worriedly.

"Don't worry, she'll win," Kurtis promised. The others watched silently.

Leigh hesitated to draw until Ellen said, "You have nothing to fear. You are too strong to lose here."

"I… hope you're right." Leigh looked at her newest card. "...It's over."

"Oh?" Heather's expression betrayed none of her feelings.

"I summon Rescue Cat! (300/100) I can send it from my field to the Cemetery to special summon two level three or lower Animal Sub-Types from my deck. They would be destroyed during my end phase, but the duel will be over before then! I'll send away my Rescue Cat to bring out X-Saber Airbellun and Koalakka!" (1600/300) (100/1600)

"I assume they have effects to make up for their poor stats," Heather said.

"Koalakka's is the one I was really after," Leigh said. "When another Animal Sub-Type is out, I can reduce one of your monster's attacks to zero! (0/2000) All I have to do now is play another Wild Burst on Koalakka!" (1700/1600)

"I'm finished…" Heather murmured.

"X-Saber attacks your lion, and Koalakka attacks directly!" The two monsters sprung forward, quickly putting an end to the match.

Leigh: 2650

Heather: 0

Though Leigh had won, she continued to watch Heather cautiously, afraid that she would not accept her defeat that easily. To her surprise, Heather instead appeared immensely relieved. "Thank you."

"Huh?"

"Now that you have won, my work here is done. I can at last return to my husband." She smiled at Leigh's confused expression. "Really, I'm grateful. In return, I'll tell you an important detail. Someone you care about is still here, and is in trouble. You should not leave here just because you are done with me."

Leigh hesitated before saying, "All right."

"I wish you the best of luck…" Heather's voice grew faint as her body vanished. Ash disappeared as well, leaving no trace of them behind.

"Victory!" Dennis cheered.

"We've all managed to get past at least one duel," Courtney said.

"Way to go, sis!" Kurtis said. "We all think you did well!" He glanced at the others. "Right?"

"I suppose," Chasity admitted.

"Thanks…" Leigh turned to Ellen, staring at her. She suddenly flung her arms around her Soul Monster's neck and buried her face in her fur, breaking into sobs.

"Leigh! Are you hurt?" Ellen asked in alarm.

"N-no… I just can't believe you're finally here," she managed to say. "I thought something was wrong, that I didn't deserve a Soul Monster, but now…"

Ellen nuzzled her neck in an assuring manner. "You did nothing wrong. I was not to emerge until absolutely needed, that's all. Until now, others could handle the situations that occurred. But you needed me, so I came."

Leigh gave a small nod as she wiped her eyes. "I'm glad you did…"

"I didn't know she was so dead-set on getting a Soul Monster," Jin remarked.

"We've been raised alongside Soul Monsters," Kurtis said. "They've been our friends and part of our family."

"Leigh always enjoyed talking to them, even when younger," Lance said. "I remember one of the first times we met, she spent hours speaking with my mother's Soul Monster, a Red Eyes Black Dragon."

"Even if some Soul Monsters are humanoid, there are many animals too," Courtney added. "Talking animals… I guess they really appeal to her."

"That, and once you have your Soul Monster, you're never really alone," Ace said. "Arcadia's been keeping me going through the toughest of times."

Arcadia looked flustered by that. "You praise me too much, my lord."

"No, I'd agree." Shane patted Jin on the head. "I can't count how many times Jin's helped me out."

"Hey, I've told you I don't like that!" Jin said, scowling as he roughed up his hair again.

"Will they play with you?" Angela asked, giving Sera a thoughtful glance.

"Uh… I guess they could," Courtney said.

Angela clapped her hands together. "Then we should do that! What do you think, Sera?"

"I do not know what the word 'play' means," Sera said flatly.

Angela gasped. "How can you not know that?"

Before they had a chance to go further off topic, Leigh and Ellen walked over to the group. "Sorry for my outburst. I'm ready to go on."

"Should we trust Heather and keep looking around here?" Lance asked.

"I don't think she'd lie to us," Leigh replied. "Let's go further in."

"Anyone disagree?" Ace said. Nobody answered. "Then it's settled."

"This way would be the easiest to continue," Chasity said. She continued to lead them onward.

To be continued…


	13. A Real Danger

Hey look another update.

**Chapter Thirteen: A Real Danger**

The walk along the canyon remained silent too long for Kurtis' liking. He gave in to his impatience and said, "So, who do you think Heather was talking about?"

"You mean the person she mentioned being in trouble?" Lance shook his head. "I really have no idea."

"Can't be anyone related to me," Ace remarked.

"And why is that?" Chasity said with a frosty look.

"You're the only people I know, and you're all here," Ace said simply.

"What? You don't have any friends in real life?" Leigh said in surprise.

Ace shrugged. "Can't say I do."

"What a surprise," Chasity muttered.

If Ace heard her, he did not respond. "How about you, Shane?"

"I doubt it's anyone I know," Shane said. "Besides my mentor, there are only a couple of people I have met."

"If it was one of us," Lance said, indicating to himself, Leigh, Kurtis, and Courtney, "Then we would probably all know that person, as would Chasity."

"We know a lot of people, and they all come to Teknisk Wereld," Courtney said. "I doubt we can narrow it down."

Leigh sighed. "Unfortunately."

"Why does the person's identity matter?" Arcadia inquired. "If it is a friend, we should help them. A name would not change that."

"I agree," Ellen said. "Let's focus on trying to find the person quickly."

"The sooner we're done, the sooner we can play!" Angela said happily.

Jin laughed. "Good to see her priorities are straight!"

The path they had been walking on, between a cliff and the chasm, was beginning to become narrower. Only one person could comfortably fit at a time. Courtney went first, being the most surefooted due to her gymnastic practices, while Naomi timidly followed her. Lance came next with Dennis flying over him. Angela bounced after him, completely unconcerned with the drop below, and Sera came at a mild pace after her. Leigh kept her arm around Ellen's neck for reassurance while walking. Ace, Arcadia, Chasity, Petra, and Shane showed no worries while going in that order. Jin floated alongside Shane without a care in the world. This left Kurtis and Epsilon to take up the rear, mainly because of Epsilon's size.

"Hey, this isn't about to collapse, is it?" Kurtis asked nervously, glancing back as small rocks were dislodged by Epsilon's steps.

"Not on its own," Chasity stated. "Remember, safety requirements."

"After the swamp, I don't trust anything," Kurtis muttered.

Epsilon's visor began to glow, and without warning he shoved his way before Kurtis. The group heard the sound of cannon fire just before Epsilon was blasted in the chest.

"Epsilon! What-" Kurtis began to say.

"Enemy detected," Sera stated, pointing upwards.

Directly across them on a high ledge, a giant machine made of three parts could be seen. The bottom resembled a yellow tank, its middle had a red dragon's head and tail, and its top was colored blue and gold. Two cannons were mounted on its shoulders, with two more on the tank section and a fifth located at the dragon's mouth. All of them were pointed towards the group.

"Oh monkeys," was all Jin managed to say before the attack commenced.

The two tank cannons fired first. One was off-center of its target, causing the blast to hit the ground below Courtney instead of killing her. This result was hardly any better though, as the attack caused the ground below her to collapse. She cried out as she began to fall into the canyon.

Only two people noticed this. Lance yelled her name, but could do nothing else. Naomi saw her fall, and as timid as she was, she knew her duty was to protect Courtney. She dove into the canyon after her, wings spread.

Everyone else was too distracted by the second attack, which had been aimed at Ace. He braced himself for the blow, having nowhere to dodge it. Fortunately for him, Arcadia was close enough to get in front of him. He took the full hit, his cry of pain drowned out by the explosion.

The monster wasted no time launching its next attack. Its dragon head spat out cannon fire, this one directed at Lance. Frozen by what had happened to Courtney, Lance did not notice the danger. He barely heard Dennis shout, "Look out!" before tackling him in the back. He was knocked to the ground, the attack hitting the wall above him instead.

"Leigh, get onto me!" Ellen demanded. Knowing she had no time to question Ellen's decision, Leigh mounted her, and Ellen took off into the sky.

By this time, Naomi had caught up with Courtney in midair. She grabbed her around the waist with her foot talons and flapped her wings frantically, trying to slow their descent. A rock from the wall that had been hit interrupted that. It hit her left wing, and with a shriek, she and Courtney began to fall once more.

As swiftly as the first two, the third wave came, this time from the two cannons on its shoulders. One rocketed towards Angela. She instantly brought her hair forward to shield her body. The fire knocked her backwards, but when the hair fell away, it showed that she was unharmed.

Chasity had no such defenses at her disposal, and she was the other target. Her mind went blank as she stared at her death sentence, until Shane pushed her back. "Stay there!" He held his right arm towards the attack. It collided, sending him flying backwards from the force. Chasity barely managed to catch him, stopping them both from colliding with the wall behind them.

While this occurred, a blur sped by Lance. He looked over the rift to see Larka diving towards Courtney and Naomi. She called to Naomi, "Grab onto me!" Naomi obeyed, wrapping her arms around her waist as Larka reached towards the rock walls they sped by. She dug her claw-like fingernails into them, producing a horrible screech as they began to slow down. Larka's policy of not wearing shoes when possible paid off, for she was able to use her toenails as well to slow them further. Though she was clearly in pain, they finally came to a stop.

Epsilon took advantage of the machine reloading to make his own attack. Lasers shot out of his chest, colliding with his foe. Though charred by his attack, the machine took aim at Epsilon with all five of its cannons.

That was when Ellen struck. She and Leigh plunged from the sky to encase the machine in flames. They did little damage to the metal beast, but it was clearly distracted. Epsilon used the precious seconds he had been given to raise both of his arms. He fired his left fist, then his right. They both connected, one after another, leaving gaping holes in the machine's structure. It feebly tried to aim its shoulder cannons at Ellen, prompting her to fly out of range as quickly as she could.

They heard a distant shout. Though unable to make out the words, it must have been a retreat order, for the machine instantly began to speed away. Epsilon, waiting for his fists to return, was unable to launch another attack before the machine got away.

The attack had lasted less than a minute. Its speed left the group speechless, until Lance got his wits together enough to shout, "Courtney! Are you all right?"

Still in shock, Courtney did not respond. Larka spoke instead. "She'll be okay! We'll be up soon. Until then, all of you, get off that ledge! I doubt they'll come back, but if they do…"

Ellen descended onto the wider piece of land as Leigh said, "She's right. Let's take this time to heal up."

The group responded by carefully getting off the ledge. Ace had to help Arcadia to reach safety, where he promptly collapsed. Digging in his pockets for support cards, Ace muttered, "You nearly got yourself killed, you fool! If that was just so I'd survive, remember that if you're gone, it won't be long before I'm far behind!"

Arcadia smiled weakly at him. "It is always amusing to see you express concern, Lord Ace."

Merely shaking his head, Ace brought out the potions he had been looking for. "You're going to be pretty sore for the next few days, but these should help. You're lucky you've got all that armor on."

Kurtis also had concerns for his Soul Monster. "How're you feeling, Epsilon?"

"I am down to 45 efficiency, runt," Epsilon said emotionlessly. "However, it will take little time to regain my full potential."

"Even when beaten up, he still insults me," Kurtis grumbled. Brightening, he said, "At least you did a good job of fighting him off. You're really strong!"

"Obviously."

Though Lance kept glancing back at where Courtney had fallen, he said to Dennis, "Thanks for saving me."

"No problem! We've gotta watch each other's backs, especially when big enemies appear!" Dennis declared, puffing out his chest.

"That was a really big enemy!" Angela commented. "Don't worry, we'll get it next time!"

"You said it!" Dennis agreed.

Chasity had her concern towards Shane, who faced away from her with his left arm concealing his right. "Shane, how badly are you hurt?"

"I'm fine," he responded, not looking back. "Don't worry about me."

Jin, who drifted next to him, directed to Chasity, "He really is okay. Trust us on this one!"

Chasity was not about to let the matter drop, but she put it aside for the moment when she saw movement near the chasm. Larka climbed onto the ledge with Naomi clinging to her, and Courtney safely locked between Naomi's talons. Naomi's left wing was bent, and Larka's nails were shorn down and caked with blood. Other than that, they lacked physical injuries.

Leigh, Kurtis, and Lance gathered around Courtney as she was set on firm land. "Courtney? You're not hurt, right?" Lance asked.

Courtney shook her head numbly.

"I… I'm g-glad…" Naomi murmured.

Looking at her wing, and then Larka, Courtney finally spoke. "Thanks, Naomi, Aunt Larka. If the two of you hadn't been there…"

"I'm just glad none of you are badly hurt," Larka responded.

"Mommy!" Angela leapt over to Larka and hugged her tightly. "I didn't know you were here!"

"Yeah, where did you come from?" Kurtis inquired.

"We can discuss that in a moment," Larka stated. "Let's make sure everyone's in good shape first."

Ace approached them and held out a potion towards Naomi. "I used these on Arcadia, and he's recovering. They should help you too, though it won't heal the pain completely."

Naomi flinched away, startled by the sudden gesture. She then reached for it. "T-thank you…"

Ace happened to see Larka at that moment, and as a result nearly dropped the potion. His expression of shock quickly passed though. He gave Naomi the potion while Larka asked him, "Is something wrong? You looked startled."

"It's your ears. They caught me by surprise," Ace said.

"Oh, yes, I suppose you've never seen such a thing." Larka stroked one absentmindedly. "Sorry about that. I'm Larka, if that name's familiar to you."

"Yeah, I've heard of you before…" Ace shifted his hat lower, blocking his face further. "My apologies for my reaction."

"It's perfectly reasonable, don't worry," Larka said. She turned her attention back to the others while Ace remained silent.

"Nobody else was hurt?" Leigh asked, scanning the group.

"Epsilon got a bit battered, but he said he'd recover soon," Kurtis said.

"Then that leaves Shane." Before anyone could question Chasity on this, she walked towards him. "You can tell me that you're fine all day. That doesn't mean I'll believe it. I saw that attack hit your arm. It has to be in terrible shape."

Shane shook his head, still keeping his back to them. "It's not that bad."

"This isn't something you can be secretive about!" Chasity said fiercely. "You took a heavy hit, and it could have left permanent damage! If you don't show me where you were hit, I'll have to force you to. This isn't something I'm going to dismiss!"

"He said he was okay!" Jin retorted. "And he'd know if he was or wasn't!"

Shane cut him off. "It's all right, Jin."

"But Shane-"

"They have the right to know." Shane paused. "I'll show you why I'm unharmed. My only request is that you don't ask how this happened."

"How what happened?" Leigh asked.

Shane turned towards them, holding out his right arm. The black glove that usually covered it hung limply from his arm, torn apart by the attack it had suffered. That meant they could all see the black, metal skeleton that it had concealed. The replica appeared highly accurate to the normal structure of an arm, but the mechanical appearance shot down any chances of it being passed off as natural. Scratches and burns littered where the blast had connected. Despite this, it did not seem badly damaged.

"Shane… you…" Chasity could not finish her thought.

"It's made of strong materials. I'll just need my mentor to look it over when I get home," Shane said.

"Why…?" Leigh stopped, but Shane grasped what she wanted to know.

"Due to an injury when I was young, my arm had to be amputated. My mentor is skilled with mechanics, so he made me this to replace it." The thin fingers clenched into a fist, and then opened. "It's the best replacement I could ask for."

"What sort of injury?" Kurtis asked.

Shane did not respond, which gave Ace a chance to speak. "He just said he didn't want to tell you how it happened. Leave it be."

Kurtis, remembering the last time a conversation like this had come up, merely nodded.

"I'm sorry for pressing you," Chasity said. "But I had to know if you were hurt…"

"It's okay. I trust all of you with this knowledge." Shane smiled at their dumbfounded expressions. "If nothing else, it's been useful. Now you know why I was surprised when Andre got up as quickly as he did."

Lance whistled. "He must have had a head made of solid bone."

Nobody else pressed Shane for details, which gave Larka a chance to speak. "Kurtis asked where I came from. I'll explain that now." She glanced at Shane and Ace. "I don't know who the two of you are, so this is not directed towards you. Whatever your reasons were, you chose to go along with this, and I can't fault you for that with my limited knowledge."

She turned her gaze onto the four children. "But as for you… what were you thinking? These people are dangerous! Your parents had to go against people like these, and several times they nearly died! Can you imagine how heartbroken they'd be if you met that fate?"

"Well… we…" Leigh was unable to come up with anything better to say. Kurtis and Lance looked away guiltily while Courtney remained silent.

"This isn't a game! You can't expect that every incident you come across will end with you becoming lucky enough to escape harm!" Larka directed to Chasity, "You especially should know this! You've seen the dangers first hand! Why didn't you tell us what was going on? Their parents have a right to know, for multiple reasons!"

"…Larka, may I speak to you alone for a moment?" Chasity said tightly.

"Yes."

Larka and Chasity walked away from the group. Once they were out of earshot, Chasity snapped, "I know of the dangers we faced before! That's why I didn't contact anyone else. These enemies we're facing now have done nothing as deadly as the ones we've seen before! If it had gotten worse, I would have told you!"

"Chasity…" Larka trailed off as she continued.

"You and their parents aren't the only ones who care about these kids! I do too!" Chasity said. Larka was surprised to notice that her eyes glittered with unshed tears. "Do you really think I'd let them continue this if there was a good chance of them dying? Because I'm not that irresponsible!"

_I see… The children's parents had trusted her with watching over them. She treasures that trust. Now that I've interfered…_ Larka shook her head. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so harsh. My worry overtook me. Even though they are not related to me, I love them too. And now that I'm watching over Angela… I couldn't bring myself to stay in the dark."

"I can take care of them," Chasity said. "Will you believe that?"

"Yes. They're in good hands," Larka said.

Chasity appeared happier at that. "I'll tell you if things become worse, along with their parents. You don't have to tell them about this."

"All right." _Max will want a report, and Zack will probably be told along the way, but besides them… I can keep silent. Once I tell them about Chasity's wishes, I'm sure they'll respect them too._

"That's all I wanted." Chasity returned to the group, Larka following.

"There you two are," Ace said as they arrived. "We decided to leave for the day, unless you strongly object for some reason."

"After that adventure, I think it would be for the best," Chasity said. Her mind was still on what Larka had said, to the point that she did not realize who she was agreeing with.

"My only concern is about what we were told," Leigh said. "We never did find the person she was talking about."

Kurtis sighed. "She was probably lying and wanted us to get attacked by that monster."

"Even if not, we're in no state to continue," Lance said, looking at Courtney. She still had not moved.

"We'll meet at the lake tomorrow. That sound good?" Leigh suggested.

"Sure," Shane said. "See you then."

"Angela, why don't you return home with me?" Larka said.

"Okay!" Angela took her hand and waved with the other one to the group. "Bye bye!"

One by one, they vanished, leaving nothing behind.

…

Leigh, Kurtis, Courtney, Lance, and Chasity came to at the same time. Their Soul Monsters were waiting for them. The living room was tall enough so that even Epsilon could fit into it, much to Kurtis' relief. He had not considered the problems that could have occurred otherwise.

Courtney checked the clock and stood. "I have to be at gym practice. I'll be back when it's over."

"Are you sure you should go after what happened?" Leigh asked in concern.

"I'll be okay." Courtney headed towards the door with Naomi at her side.

Kurtis caught sight of Lance's doubtful expression and said, "Don't worry, she's got Naomi with her."

"I was impressed by Naomi," Leigh said. "She's usually so scared, but when it came to saving Courtney, she didn't hesitate at all."

"That was pretty cool," Kurtis agreed.

"Yeah." Lance started to walk to the kitchen. "If you guys don't mind, I'm going to call my parents. Mom worries if I don't."

"Go ahead," Chasity said. "I'm going to take care of a few errands. Be back soon."

Once she had left, Kurtis said, "I'm going to watch more Rozen Maiden. Want to join me?"

"In a little bit. I just need some time to think," Leigh replied.

"Don't hurt yourself," Kurtis teased before heading to his room.

"Jerk," Leigh muttered.

Their voices had attracted the attention of the only other person in the house. Gaston entered the living room, saying "Welcome back."

"Thanks," Leigh said.

Gaston looked surprised at Ellen and Epsilon. "So you and Kurtis finally received your Soul Monsters?"

"That's right." Leigh took a seat and ran her hand over Ellen's neck, which she clearly enjoyed. "This is Ellen, and he's Epsilon."

"Nice to meet the two of you. I'm Gaston, Hope's Soul Monster."

"Hope's my mother," Leigh explained.

"Ah. I am sure we will get along well," Ellen said. Epsilon did not respond.

"I hope you at least talk more than Ruecian," Gaston remarked.

"I speak only when necessary, elf," Epsilon stated.

Gaston blinked. "Well, excuse me then."

"Do you call anyone by their names?" Leigh asked Epsilon.

"Names are insignificant…" He paused, not seeming to know what to call Leigh. He eventually settled with saying, "Whoever you are."

"I'm not even worth a nickname? Geez." Leigh turned back to Ellen, who she was far more excited about. "We haven't had much of a chance to talk."

"That's true. Is there something you'd like to know?" Ellen inquired.

"You seem to feel strongly about keeping me safe," Leigh said. "Are all Soul Monsters like that? I've never seen one reacting to a dangerous situation before, so…"

"It varies for each of us," Ellen answered. "Some Soul Monsters are more open about showing their devotion, while others do not like to reveal it. However, every Soul Monster will defend their partner."

"There aren't any exceptions?" Leigh asked curiously.

"None, no matter how much one might try to deny it."

"She's right," Gaston threw in. "We all have our quirks, but that's the one thing that won't change."

"You protected Mom a lot, right?" Leigh recalled.

Gaston laughed. "If I could change appearances, my hair would be gray from how often I had to save her!"

Leigh looked at Epsilon. "What about you? Do you care about Kurtis?"

"It is more convenient that the runt lives, so I will make sure he does," Epsilon stated.

"Thanks a lot!" Kurtis yelled from his room. Apparently he could overhear their conversation.

"You don't really seem like the type to do that either," Leigh said to Petra.

"It's better that Chasity learns not to depend on me," Petra responded. "She has to make mistakes and learn from them. However, there are some things that can't be done without help. That is where I will come into play."

"I see…"

They heard the front door open. Hope came into the living room and brightened on seeing the new arrivals. "Oh, Leigh! Is that your Soul Monster?"

"Yep, and he's Kurtis'," Leigh said. "Ellen, this is my mom."

Ellen let Hope rub her neck as well. "I hope you'll keep Leigh out of trouble."

"I will do all that I can for her," Ellen said.

"And you'll look after Kurtis?" she directed to Epsilon.

"As long as it's convenient."

Hope blinked, prompting Kurtis to call out, "Don't worry, he's already helped me out!"

"Well, that's good." Hope looked around. "So, where is everyone else?"

…

Dennis hovered around Lance as he dialed the number for his home. He heard his mother say, "Drayfall residence."

"Hi Mom. How're things going?" Dennis kept an ear close to the phone, trying to get an understanding of how she sounded.

"Lance! Everything is well, thank you. Are you doing all right?" Lance winced as Kisara launched into her usual storm of questions. "You haven't been hurt? You're eating okay? You don't feel sick, right?"

"Calm down, Mom. I'm perfectly fine," Lance assured her. "We're all having a great time."

"I'm glad to hear that. Your father and I miss you, but it's important for you to spend time with your friends."

"Speaking of Dad, can I talk to him?"

"Of course. Just a moment…"

The phone produced Draken's voice. "Lance, good to hear from you. Having fun over there?"

"Sure am. Well, except for one thing," Lance said.

"And what would that be?"

"Dad, have you ever had a woman laugh at you for having a small dragon before?"

"What?" Draken sounded utterly confused. Dennis slapped his hand over his eyes.

"I got my Soul Monster, and it's a Baby Dragon. This girl named Kaida made fun of me for him."

"Your Soul Monster's a Baby Dragon?" Draken echoed.

From the background, Lance could hear howling laughter that he recognized as Kazel's. He sighed. "Yeah, unfortunately."

"Unfortunately?" Dennis protested.

"Kazel, I'm trying to speak to my son here!" Draken said, his voice distant. He soon returned to continue the conversation. "Sorry about that. Lance, what you have to remember is that all Soul Monsters are valuable in their own way. I'm sure yours will be helpful, even if he's… small."

"Thanks for the encouragement. I'd better get back to everyone else," Lance said.

"Okay. Call us anytime," Draken said.

"I will. Bye, Dad. Tell Mom I love her." He hung the phone up before returning to the living room.

"So, where is everyone else?" he heard Hope ask.

"I'm right here," Lance said, sitting on the couch next to Leigh.

"Courtney went to gym practice, and Chasity decided to run some errands," Leigh added.

Dennis flew into Lance's lap and yawned. "What a day!"

"You can say that again," Lance muttered, closing his eyes.

…

It hurt Naomi to watch Courtney practice. Yesterday, she had been amazed by how well Courtney had done. Her performance was flawless. Today, Naomi kept seeing errors in her routines. Small things, such as not completing a move or landing correctly, but errors nevertheless.

It especially became clear when Courtney got on the balance beam. Her balance was off to the point that she only made it half-way across the beam before falling. She even failed to land on her feet.

Naomi knelt beside Courtney. "You should stop for today…"

"I can keep going," Courtney whispered.

Naomi could see that she was shaking badly. _It must have affected her badly… I have to do everything I can to help._ Wrapping her arms around Courtney, Naomi said, "It's all right. You don't have to hold back your feelings anymore. Let everything out that you have to."

Courtney remained silent until tears began to leak from her eyes. Then she clung onto Naomi while sobbing heavily.

"It'll be okay…" Naomi murmured. She remained beside her master, soothing her as best as she could.

…

"Shane, are you sure it was okay to tell them about your arm?" Jin asked, following Shane towards their back door.

"I trust them with it. Sometime, I'll even tell them how I lost my original," Shane said.

Jin stared at him. "Really? Besides the old man and me, you haven't told anyone that!"

They were outside by this point and walking to a shed in the back while talking. "Shawn knows."

"He doesn't count!" Shane did not respond, causing Jin to sigh. "I've told you countless times that it isn't your fault."

Shane attempted to smile. "I appreciate that. It doesn't set my fears at ease though."

"Maybe telling the others will," Jin said.

"That is one reason I would like to bring it up. But that can wait. We have bigger concerns now." In front of the shed door now, Shane knocked. "Doc? Are you in there?"

An explosion answered him.

"Aw man, we caught him in another experiment," Jin groaned.

The door opened shortly after, revealing a man wearing a green shirt, black jeans, and worn tennis shoes. His black hair hung over his left shoulder in a ponytail. The brown eyes behind his glasses were what Shane always noticed. A day had never passed where he had not seen kindness in them.

At the moment, the man was coughing as smoke went past him. "Oh dear… you came back earlier than I expected…"

Jin brought up a breeze, causing the smoke to filter out. "You shouldn't play around with junk like that, old man!"

"Jin, I'm only in my forties," he said, though he appeared more amused than annoyed.

"Yeah, and I'm less than five years old! Compared to me, you are old!" Jin pointed out.

"I suppose that is true." The man looked alarmed as he saw Shane's shredded glove. "Shane, were you hurt?"

"No, but my arm took a bit of damage. Could you fix it?" Shane requested.

"Of course. Come on back."

They followed him to the messy room that he did all of his mechanical work in. Pulling out a tool box, Shane's mentor said, "Can you move it?"

"Yeah, it works fine as far as I can tell. But I wanted you to take a look anyway."

"Always better to be on the safe side." He began to examine the arm. "Was it a wild monster?"

"Something like that."

Jin, fidgeting impatiently, broke into their talk. "Shane, you should tell him about who you met today!"

"I guess I should," Shane said. "Doc, in Teknisk Wereld, I saw my brother."

He blinked in surprise. "Shawn? Was it a coincidence?"

"No, he was trying to find me." Shane looked away. "Shawn said that I was a murderer, and he would deal judgment for it."

"Shane…" He set down his tools and drew Shane into an embrace. "This must have brought back terrible memories. But it will be all right. I know that the two of you love each other, and will be able to work past this."

Shane nodded weakly. "Yeah…"

"The fact that you have seen him is the most important. Shawn will find you again, which means you'll have a chance of reconciling." Releasing Shane, he said, "You just have to keep trying."

"I'm sure you're right," Shane said. He remained silent as the doctor continued to work on his mechanical appendage.

…

"So how are you feeling now?" Ace asked his Soul Monster.

"Better than before, my lord."

Ace shook his head, not bothering to argue with what Arcadia called him. He had learned years ago that nothing would change his speech style. "You're not lying to me, right? You have to be in good condition before we try fighting any more enemies."

"Have I ever lied to you?" Arcadia pointed out.

"Fair enough," Ace said. "Still, you're sleeping there tonight."

Arcadia glanced at the couch he was lying on, and then around the rest of the small apartment room. It lacked furniture, pictures, and appliances. In one corner was a pile of identical clothes to the one Ace was wearing now, along with some decks of cards. Another had boxed and canned foods. The third was where their front door was, and the last remained empty.

Gesturing to the empty corner, Arcadia said, "I always rest there. It really does not bother me."

"It sure won't help you heal any faster." Ace shook his head. "I've been saying we need to get a new couch for the past few years, but I never get around to it."

"We have to focus on what is necessary," Arcadia reminded him.

"Yeah. Food, clothes, shelter. That's three important things that I once didn't have." Ace smiled to reassure Arcadia. "Don't worry, I'm not going to dwell on the past. There's a lot going on right now, and it's keeping me distracted."

"It helps to have friends," Arcadia said.

"Dunno if I can call them friends yet. I do enjoy hanging out with them though." Ace paused, trying to think of something on the fringes of his mind.

His concerns were quickly shifted as he felt a pain in his back. "What? Argh… not now!"

"Lord Ace?" Arcadia sat up with a concerned expression.

"It's acting up again," Ace hissed, sinking to his knees. "Sorry to have to ask this of you, but…"

Arcadia stood, and after recovering his balance, went next to Ace and laid his hand on his back. "This takes no effort. Even if it did, your well-being takes precedence."

Ace sighed in relief as the pain ebbed away. He then said, "You're just as important. I wish you'd get that through your head."

He received no response, but decided not to press the issue. Enough had happened for one day.

…

While Larka was amused at watching Angela excitedly run around the beach outside, she eventually called her over. "Angela, I wanted to ask you something."

Angela tilted her head. "What is it?"

Larka gestured to Sera, who stood silently at the edge of the water. "How did you get a Soul Monster? Did you have a Soul Card?"

"Not until I wanted one!" Angela said. "I needed to help my friends, so I reached inside of myself, and Sera came out!"

"I see. Why don't you go play some more?"

"Okay!" Angela sped away to continue her antics.

Approaching Sera, Larka said, "How are you doing?"

"All systems are clear. I am ready to take action whenever necessary," Sera stated.

Startled, Larka responded, "Why don't you play with Angela?"

"Playing is not my function. I am to guard my master, her companions, and Teknisk Wereld."

"I see…" Larka looked at where Angela was happily wading into the sea. _Sera acts just like Angela did when we first met her. That can't be a coincidence._

"Mommy?" Angela called to her. "Is Daddy coming soon?"

"He's probably working late," Larka answered. "We'll see him later."

"Okay!" Satisfied with that, Angela continued on her way, leaving Larka to ponder.

…

The woman's tone held a cold fury in it. "None of them succeeded. This wave did not go as well as planned."

Her anger began to fade as her calculating mind took over. "What went wrong? I noticed two main problems. Their Soul Monsters were unable to comprehend what their orders were, to the point that it hindered their duels. The other is that the Enslaved had too much free will. Some were begging to be killed."

No response could be heard, but the woman acted as though she had been given one. "We must continue experimenting. I will keep an eye on the second wave, once they are created."

To be continued…


	14. A Chilling Experience

This took a little longer to write than expected.

**Chapter Fourteen: A Chilling Experience**

When Courtney woke up the next morning, memories of the event yesterday flooded into her mind. However, they were not nearly as upsetting after resting.

"Courtney? How do you feel?" She turned to see Naomi standing by her bed.

"Fine, thanks."

Naomi smiled in relief. "That's good. Everyone will be happy to see you back to normal."

"Yeah. We can continue looking for Enslaved today." Courtney got out of bed and began to change into her clothes.

"You should talk to your mother first," Naomi said. "You wanted to take time off from gymnastics. After what happened at the canyon, it'd be best to do that now."

Courtney felt a pang of nervousness at her suggestion. Nevertheless, she agreed. "It's affecting my performance pretty badly. This would be the best time."

When she was done getting ready for the day, Courtney went out of her room to find her mother. At Brandi's door, she heard voices, causing her to halt. Courtney gestured for Naomi to stay silent as she listened in on the conversation.

"How is your leg doing?" Courtney recognized the first voice as Larka's.

Brandi answered, "Lilian's told me that my career as a gymnast is over."

"What?" Larka exclaimed.

"The strain would damage the metal that's replacing my knee cap," Brandi said, her tone reflecting both frustration and distress. "It's not that I'm worried about being unable to enter competitions; I haven't done that in years. It's losing my coaching style that hurts. I always liked helping the kids with hands-on advice, and performing to show them what to do. Now I can't even do that!"

"Brandi…"

Courtney backed away from the door. When she got to the end of the hallway, she shook her head. "I can't do it."

"Courtney?" Naomi asked.

"If I tell my mom that I want to stop when she can't go on…" Courtney sighed. "I'd break her heart. So even if I don't want to…"

She stopped talking when the door opened. Larka came out of Brandi's room and smiled weakly at her. "Good morning, Courtney. How are you doing after yesterday?"

Guilt jolted through Courtney when she caught sight of Larka's hands. All of her fingers had bandaged wrapped around them, showing the toll the rescue had taken on her. She suppressed her thoughts to reply, "I'm fine now. Thanks, Aunt Larka. Um… If you don't mind me asking… are you going to tell anyone about what happened?"

"I have to tell Max and Zack. They are my partners," Larka said. "But I will make it clear that they shouldn't tell anyone else, or interfere with your actions."

"I understand," Courtney answered.

"It's time for me to go to work," Larka said. "Zack's probably waiting for me there, since he didn't make it home last night. It's rare for him to work late, but…" She gave a small shrug. "It happens sometimes."

"Yeah. Have a good day," Courtney said.

"You too. Be careful out there." Larka left, and Courtney went to say goodbye to her mother.

…

Kurtis poked his head into Leigh's room. "Mom's finally left."

"That means Courtney should be here any moment," Leigh said.

"Angela too. So come on out and be ready to go," Lance said from behind Kurtis.

When they gathered in the living room, Chasity was waiting for them, along with Courtney and Angela. Angela propelled herself up and clung to Leigh's neck happily. "Hope!"

"Why me?" Leigh groaned.

Lance showed more concern for Courtney than his unfortunate companion. "How are you doing today?"

"I'm all ready to go," Courtney said with a smile.

"That's great to hear." Lance attached his Duel Disk. "We'd best be off then."

It took little time for them to prepare. They left shortly after.

…

Max looked up when he heard a knock. "Come in."

"Good morning," Larka said as she entered.

"Same to you." Max blinked when he noticed what she was wearing. "Glad to see you're back to normal."

"Oh…" Larka glanced at the white shirt and pants she had on. "I wasn't going to wear white after Angela died, but now that she's back…"

"Makes sense to me." Max leaned forward on his desk. "I wish we could stay on happy subjects, but a problem has come up. I asked Zack to investigate monster attacks at the canyon yesterday, and he hasn't returned."

"Monster attacks? Zack should be able to handle…" Remembering the machine that had attacked the group, she trailed off. "I haven't told you about what I found out yesterday."

"Right, your report. Can you tell me now?" Max requested.

Larka outlined everything she had seen while following the group. Max asked a few questions about Shane and Ace, curious to hear who had been helping the children and Chasity. The Enslaved surprised him the most, along with her description of the monster that attacked.

"That sounds like an XYZ Dragon Cannon. Kanon had that as his Soul Monster," Max said. "It would fit with everything you've said."

"What do you mean? And who is Kanon?" Larka asked.

"The two you saw them battle were people we defeated in the past. Aurora fought Brandi before you ever met her, and Robin was confronted by Miles alone. I wouldn't have even remembered his name if Hope hadn't showed me her books for revisions." Max sighed. "Kanon was someone Rue dueled. Again, it happened before you came."

Larka paled. "Now I remember Robin. But he was…"

"Dead," Max finished. "All of them have died."

"So their words were true…" she murmured.

"It sure looks that way. If my theory's right, Zack could have been badly hurt. Soul Monsters are stronger than wild ones, and if that XYZ Dragon Cannon is a Soul Monster…" Max let Larka draw the conclusions.

"Right. I'm going to look for him," Larka said.

"You're sure you'll be all right by yourself?" Max asked.

Larka nodded. "Zack didn't know what we were up against. I'm prepared for it."

"Okay. Good luck," Max said.

"Thanks." Larka exited, leaving Max to ponder the situation.

…

When they arrived at the lake, they found Shane and Jin were already there. Shane greeted them by saying, "Good morning."

"Same to you," Leigh replied.

Chasity glanced at his right arm, which had a new black glove covering it. "Is your arm fixed?"

"Yes, thanks. It wasn't badly damaged," Shane assured her.

"Sounds like we're in good shape then," Ace said as he and Arcadia approached them.

"As long as Courtney has recovered, I believe so," Shane agreed.

Courtney nodded. "I have."

"We should decide where to look today," Leigh suggested.

"How about the snow lands? We haven't been there yet," Kurtis said.

"No!"

Surprised at the outburst, they turned to Chasity, waiting for an explanation. She awkwardly said, "There's no point in searching for Enslaved at that place. We have plenty of other locations to check first."

"But one might be there. We'll have to look there eventually, so why not now? We're not that far from it," Leigh said.

"It would be convenient to head there," Lance said.

"Do you have a more specific reason for looking elsewhere?" Shane asked Chasity. She reluctantly shook her head.

"Let's be off then." Ace inserted a card in his Duel Disk, causing a ship to appear in the water.

"All aboard the Skull Blood Pirate Ship!" Dennis said.

"That sounds kind of disturbing," Kurtis remarked. Despite his thoughts, they were quick to board and set off.

With a fine breeze and smooth sailing, the ship reached the frosty shores quickly. Courtney clutched her arms around herself instantly. "It's freezing!"

"What'd you expect? We're in a place with snow!" Jin said.

Anyone could tell that Chasity was affected by the chill as well, but the sweater she brought out of her pack was offered to Courtney instead. "Wear this."

"Thanks." Courtney put it on. "That's much better."

Ace shifted his hat over his eyes. "Let's get this over with."

"Not fond of the cold either?" Leigh asked as they began walking.

"Afraid not. I have some bad memories of snow," Ace said. "It doesn't matter that much, but I'd rather be out quickly."

"I doubt any of us like the temperature," Lance said. "Too bad we have no idea of where the Enslaved are, or we could skip some areas entirely. As of now, we have to search everywhere."

"Unfortunate, but true," Ellen stated. "We can't overlook any locations, as unpleasant as they might be."

Shane was keeping an eye on Chasity. He had noticed that besides appearing cold, she had a tense expression, one that hinted at a deep fear. "Is something wrong?"

"Huh? No, nothing…" Chasity did not elaborate, and Shane did not press her to, even though he had doubts about her explanation.

"How're you feeling? Not too cold?" Lance asked Courtney.

"Nope. This sweater's a really good one," Courtney said.

"Be sure to tell us if you do," Lance said.

"Why only her? Can't all of us just say we're too cold?" Dennis complained.

"It's not too cold!" Angela retorted. "Too cold would mean we'd be frozen solid!"

"That's a pretty extreme definition of too cold," Leigh muttered.

Kurtis suddenly stopped. "Company halt!"

"What's wrong?" Leigh looked ahead to see the snow had changed to a frozen lake, with the end nowhere in sight. "Oh… that."

"Yeah, that," Kurtis said.

Staring at the lake, Chasity said, "We should turn back."

Petra shook her head. "You're forgetting safety protocols, ones you've brought up yourself. They apply here too."

"We saw how well that worked the past two times," Kurtis pointed out.

"Robin was hiding behind trees, and that monster shot at us from above." Lance gestured to the wide, empty spread of ice. "I don't see anywhere someone can conceal themselves this time."

"I guess that's true," Kurtis admitted. Chasity was still clearly uneasy, but she did not protest further.

Seeing the two of their reactions, Shane said, "If it makes you feel better, I'll lead to keep a look out for enemies." He stepped onto the ice. It showed no signs of cracking. "If it can support me, I'm sure the two of you will be all right."

Kurtis went on next. "Seems okay. Epsilon, you want to try?"

Even the heavy machine did not appear to affect the ice. Assured by this, the others stepped onto the surface. Only Chasity hesitated before doing so.

"You're not gonna melt the ice, are you?" Dennis asked Ellen.

"I choose what I want my flames to affect, and how much they are affected." She flapped one of her fiery wings through Dennis, causing him to yelp in alarm. "See? No harm done."

"Kind of warm, but you're right," Dennis said once he got over his shock.

Angela slid around them in circles. "Whee! This is fun!"

"I'm getting dizzy just watching her," Jin groaned.

Five minutes of walking passed without incident. That changed when Shane spotted something from the corner of his eye. He turned, only to see nothing there.

"What is wrong?" Arcadia asked, having noticed his action.

"I thought I saw a movement." Shane began to walk in that direction. "It was somewhere over-"

A loud crack tore through the air as the ice split under Shane. He fell into the waters beneath, vanishing from sight.

"Shane!" Jin flew over the hole. "Hold on, I'll save you!"

Dennis grabbed his arm. "Oh no you don't! Even if you could find him under there, you're not strong enough to get him out!"

"But Shane can't swim!" Jin protested. "I have to help him!"

Their argument was halted by a flash of light. It had come from a card Ace had inserted into his Duel Disk, which created a long, thick rope.

"What are you doing?" Courtney said.

Ace shoved his Duel Disk and hat into Lance's arms. "Hold onto these, will you?" He tied the rope around his waist before throwing it to Epsilon. "When I pull on it three times, haul us up."

"Are you serious? You'll never find him in time!" Kurtis exclaimed.

"Impossible or not, I have to try!" Ace said.

"Here."

The sound of an unfamiliar voice caught their attentions. They looked to see a girl in white clothes pointing at an area on the ice with her right hand. Her left hand clutched onto a small crystal ball.

"Who's she supposed to be?" Kurtis asked.

"Never mind that!" Ace said. "Can someone make another hole in the ice there?"

"Sera, you should do it!" Angela told her.

"Affirmative." Sera held up her hand and shot a fireball at the area the girl had pointed to. The ice there melted on contact. Without hesitation, Ace dove into the water and swam out of sight.

A thick silence spread as they waited for any signs from the two underwater. Jin hovered nearby while watching anxiously. Everyone else remained still, their minds numb.

Only Chasity had constructed thoughts about the situation. _This is my fault… I knew we shouldn't have tried to cross! It's like it broke because I wanted our passage to fail…_

Her irrational thoughts were shoved aside when she saw the rope jerk three times. Kurtis said to Epsilon, "Pull them up, quickly!"

"Hopefully it will be a 'them'," Courtney murmured.

The sight of two figures emerging from the water dispelled those fears. Ace had his arms around Shane, who began coughing up water at once.

"Damn, that was cold." Ace glanced at the stunned group. "Someone mind helping him up? I think my limbs are frozen in place."

Chasity helped to pull Shane out of the water, and then assisted Ace in getting out. She began looking for a support card to dry them off, but Ellen interrupted her search, speaking while kneeling. "Place them on my back."

Once they were there, Ellen wrapped her flaming wings around them. Steam emerged from their soaked clothes until they were completely dry. She unfolded her wings to let Ace off, who helped Shane to get down as well.

"Shane!" Jin was by his side in an instant. "Are you okay?"

After a few deep breaths, Shane said, "Yes, though I wouldn't be if I hadn't had help. Thanks, Ace, Epsilon."

"All in a day's work," Ace said. Despite his light tone, he looked relieved.

"Sera helped!" Angela said proudly.

Shane laughed weakly at her statement. "Then you have my gratitude as well, Sera."

"I am happy to be of service," Sera said.

"You should thank that girl too," Leigh remarked.

"Who?" Shane asked.

"The one over…" Leigh trailed off, seeing the girl was gone. "But she was right there!"

"She knew where you were underwater," Ace explained to Shane. "I have no idea how, but it's what allowed us to save you."

Kurtis frowned. "Something was odd about her."

"We may see her again," Courtney said. "If we do, we can talk to her then."

"If one of you happens to recognize her, would you tell me? I'm curious about this," Shane said.

"Will do, general!" Jin saluted mockingly.

"Someone's back to their old self," Kurtis commented.

"You're sure you're all right?" Chasity asked Shane.

"Yes," Shane assured. "Thanks for your concern."

"How about you?" Chasity directed to Ace.

Ace blinked. "You're concerned about me of all people?"

"Whatever my feelings about you are, you deserve some concern for doing that," Chasity said.

"Yeah, I doubt many people would have jumped straight into a frozen lake!" Leigh said.

Luckily for Ace, Lance had given him back his Duel Disk and hat. He shifted the latter down, hiding his embarrassed expression. "It's no big deal. I feel fine."

"Then let's finish crossing before anyone else falls through!" Kurtis urged them.

"Amen to that!" Dennis said.

The rest of the trip passed without incident. When they stepped onto the snow, Leigh sighed. "I'm glad that's over with."

"No kidding," Kurtis said, wiping his brow. "I was afraid the ice would break any minute!"

"But how did it break in the first place?" Arcadia wondered. "There were no Enslaved nearby to weaken it."

"Maybe one of them set up a trap," Kurtis suggested.

"At the one in a million chance that we'd just happen to walk over that one spot of ice? I doubt it," Lance said.

"We should keep looking around here," Leigh said. "Otherwise, our crossing will have been for nothing."

"That's true," Shane said. "Let's continue."

The landscape on this side of the lake had more hills, making it a more difficult trip. They continued without complaint, knowing it was preferable to what they had just walked over. No problems occurred until they reached the top of a particularly high slope.

When they cleared it, a large hill could be seen. It held no significance that anyone else could see. However, when Chasity saw it, her eyes widened. She began to have trouble breathing as her mind clouded. When her hand floated to her chest and lightly touched it, visions flickered through her mind.

_A cold, cruel laugh accompanied the snap of a whip. The woman's weapon dug into the young girl, who screamed in pain._

"I'm going to die… Someone save me… Please save me…"

Chasity's faint whispers were only picked up by two people. Petra was about to take action, but Ace acted first. He grabbed her arm and pulled her down the slope, causing the hill to be out of sight. "Hey, snap out of it!"

"What's going on?" Lance said. Everyone else watched with puzzlement.

"I think she's hallucinating." Ace spoke to her again. "Chasity! Can you hear me?"

Chasity shook her head, seeming to come out of a trance. "What…?"

"Don't scare us like that!" Kurtis said. "You looked completely zoned out!"

"Sorry… I'm fine now." Chasity stood and glanced at Ace. "You actually used my name."

"If I didn't know better, I'd think you did that as some kind of test," Ace said.

Chasity ignored that. "Let's continue." She headed around the slope, carefully avoiding crossing it.

"Wonder what that was about," Dennis remarked as they followed. Ace remained where he was for a moment, watching them leave.

"You have potential."

Ace turned to see Petra there. "Huh?"

"Not many people can get through to her like that. Maybe you'll see what she's hidden from everyone else." Petra walked after the group before he could respond.

Ace scratched the back of his head. "I have no idea what she just said to me." He shrugged and followed them. "Everything's pretty confusing right now. It'll fall into place eventually."

To be continued…


	15. Royal Appearance

Get your scarves out, I'm sure Hell is freezing over since I finally got around to updating. Things have been very busy lately, but I am finally back home from a lot of traveling, so more constant updates should happen now. Sorry for the wait, and thank you for being patient enough to see it through.

Also, a really belated happy birthday to Habado since I meant to upload this on that day.

***Chapter Fifteen: Royal Appearance***

It seemed misfortune had left them. The group continued through the snowy lands with no problems other than the temperature. Ellen did her best to help by providing warmth to whomever she noticed shivering. It became increasingly difficult to assist everyone the longer they remained in the area.

Chasity continued to lead the way. She ignored the continuous jokes Kurtis, Dennis, and Jin made, being far too wrapped up in her thoughts to make sense of them.

"Chasity?"

She turned her head to see that Shane walked beside her. "Do you need something?"

"You seemed distant. Were you remembering something back at that hill?"

Chasity debated answering, but decided that there was no sense in hiding it from him. "Yes."

"There's only one incident that I can assume you were thinking of. Tundra Flail… From what I read, it's easy to see why you panicked."

"I have tried to put the incident out of my mind, but it never works for long." She lightly touched her stomach. "There are reminders everywhere."

Shane glanced at his gloved arm before responding. "I understand what you mean." He looked back at her with a smile. "Just remember that you aren't alone now. If you ever need help, I'm always ready to. I'm sure everyone else here feel the same."

"It isn't that simple, but I appreciate the thought," Chasity said sincerely. "Thanks."

"Anytime."

Jin dropped between them, hovering with an impish grin. "What're you two doing? Oooh, is it a secret conversation? I love secrets. Come on, tell me!"

Chasity shoved him into the snow. "Mind your own business."

"Hey, I didn't need any help with getting colder!" Jin complained as he brushed the powder off himself.

"That's why you don't try bothering her," Kurtis informed him while walking by.

"I never would have guessed." Having learned his lesson, Jin remained a fair distance away from Chasity afterwards.

Everyone else who saw the incident appeared amused, except for Courtney. Despite wearing Chasity's sweater, the cold was beginning to affect her. Wrapping her arms around herself did nothing to stop her shivering.

Lance noticed the change at once. "Courtney, is it getting to be too much?"

"Yes," she admitted. "I don't think I can go on much longer."

"If you don't mind me asking, why are you so sensitive to the cold?" Ace inquired. "Judging by what Lance has been saying, it seems serious."

"It's not just the cold," Courtney said. "I can't handle hot temperatures well either. It's due to a condition called temperature hypersensivity. I've had it since I was born."

"When Brandi was pregnant with Courtney, she underwent some severe situations, such as torture inside a volcano," Chasity said bitterly. "We were afraid of what effects it would have on her child. That may not be the reason, but most of us believe it is."

"It could have been a lot worse," Leigh added. "I'm grateful that's the only problem to have come up."

"In any case, we should end our search," Ellen stated. "It is not worth the risks of Courtney's health being endangered."

Kurtis sighed. "Yeah. Too bad, since it looked like an Enslaved is around here somewhere from the ice incident. But we can't go on like this."

"Wait. I can go a bit further." Courtney pointed to a large hill of snow. "Let's just get to the top of that and have a look around. If there's nothing that stands out, we can leave."

Leigh eyed the distance. "It doesn't look too far. I think Courtney can handle that."

"All right, but only up to there," Lance insisted.

Chasity nodded. "I agree. We shouldn't take any unnecessary risks."

Jin flew ahead of them as they climbed up the hill. He reached the top first and stopped abruptly. "I think this counts as something standing out!"

They joined him to see what he was looking at. Before them towered a huge castle made of gray stone. The front entrance had a black gate barring the way, which that was the only defense mechanism they could see. There were no signs of life coming from the structure.

"This must be one of the areas that were recently added," Chasity said. "I didn't know something like this was out here."

"I'd heard there was a castle somewhere in Teknisk Wereld, but I never found out the location," Ace said.

"None of us come here that often," Shane stated. "It's not surprising that we didn't know about it."

"That place just screams 'big bad evil guy fortress'," Kurtis remarked. "I bet there's an Enslaved hiding out in it."

"I second that!" Jin declared. "Let's go in and find him!"

"B-but w-what about…" Naomi trailed off and gave Courtney a worried glance.

"One of the biggest problems is the wind chill," Courtney said. "I think if we're inside and I keep the sweater on, I'll be okay. And if I'm not, we can always leave, right?"

"I guess so," Lance said reluctantly.

"It won't even be an issue if we can't get in," Chasity said. "Let's take a closer look at the gate."

As they approached the portcullis, it began to slowly rise. It stopped at the top as if beckoning them inside.  
Jin frowned. "Okay, that's a little creepy."

"It's a spooky old castle, there's bound to be some eerie things lying around," Dennis said. "But that won't stop us!"

"No, but I don't like this feeling," Lance said. "We should proceed cautiously-"

Angela cut through his words. "This looks fun! Let's go!" She ran inside happily with Sera following at a slower pace.

Lance slapped his forehead. "If she wasn't one of the most powerful individuals in Teknisk Wereld, I'd worry about her."

"I think that's all the more reason to be concerned," Ace pointed out. "We'd better go or she'll leave us behind."

Upon entering the castle, they first noticed the increase in temperature. Though still chilly, it was not as unbearably cold as outside. Then they saw the hallway that stretched out before them. Suits of armor lined the walls. Each of them held an axe in an upright position. Other than those, the hallway had no distinguishing features.

"These are cool!" Angela said. Her hair stretched forward to poke at the helmet of the nearest suit of armor.

Leigh went forward to scoop her up. "Don't play around with those things. What if one of the axes fell?"

"If it did, I hope you'd be able to function well in two pieces," Dennis joked.

"Very funny." Leigh glanced at the suits nervously. "Let's go further in. I don't like this place."

"Why? It's not like they're going to attack us," Kurtis said.

"Still, they give me a weird feeling," Courtney said. She had stopped shivering by this point and was looking around warily. "I can understand what Leigh's saying."

"Aw, nothing bad's going to happen! Watch!" Jin flew down the hallway and stopped near the end. "See? Nothing wrong-"

The two suits of armor beside him suddenly opened their hands. Their axes fell towards Jin. Only a quick flip backwards kept him from being sliced in half. "Whoa!"

"Nothing wrong, huh?" Leigh muttered.

"Just what we needed, traps," Chasity grumbled.

"So how do we get by? Is running through our only option?" Kurtis asked.

Shane slipped a card into his Duel Disk. The suits of armor began to glow before collapsing. "I never thought I'd find a use for Remove Trap."

"You carry around the stupidest cards!" Jin called to him.

"But it did work," Lance said. "Let's move on."

At the end of the hallway was a wooden door. Kurtis moved forward to open it, but was stopped by Shane grabbing his shoulder.

"What's wrong?" Courtney inquired.

"Those axes may not have been the only trap. Stand back." Once they did so, Shane reached forward to open the door with his right hand. A click sounded before the door opened. When Shane withdrew his arm, they could see a dart sticking out of his mechanical hand.

Kurtis stared at it. "Whoa. I'm glad you stopped me."

"I didn't know what to expect, but after reading lots of fantasy books, I have some ideas of what could happen." Shane pulled out the dart and tossed it away. "The entire castle must be trapped."

"Then you should let us go first," Ellen said. "We are your Soul Monsters. It is our duty to be your shields."

"She is right. We will take the lead," Arcadia stated. "Nevertheless, be cautious."

"That goes double for you," Leigh directed to Angela.

"Huh? Why? I'm careful," Angela said. Leigh merely sighed in response.

The Soul Monsters proceeded ahead of their partners. Epsilon barely managed to squeeze through the doorway, but that was the only problem they encountered. The room they entered had a large, spiral staircase without railings. There were three more doors, one on each of the walls around the room.

"Which way?" Lance asked.

Chasity looked around momentarily. "Probably up the stairs, as much as I hate to say it. It looks to be the riskiest route so I'm sure an enemy would hide up there instead."

"So who wants to be a guinea pig?" Dennis asked. "One of us should go first."

"I will," Arcadia said. "Stand back in case it happens to have a wide range of effect."

The group waited with baited breath. The staircase seemed to be an obvious choice for a trap. What caught them by surprise was that Arcadia did not even make it that far. When he walked in front of the first step, a panel slid out from beneath him, causing him to fall through instantly.

Before anyone else could react, Angela sprang out of Leigh's arms. Her hair flew into the hole and came back up with Arcadia wrapped in it. She set him beside them as the rest of them tried to understand what had just happened.

"That was close," Arcadia remarked, not seeming any worse for the wear.

"It couldn't have been that deep of a fall," Kurtis said.

"No, but the spikes would have posed a problem," Arcadia said dryly. "Thank you, Lady Angela."

Angela giggled at his words. "I'm not a lady!"

"Ignore him, he always talks like that." Despite his words, Ace was clearly relieved Arcadia had not been hurt.

Jin looked over the edge of the hole and whistled. "You weren't kidding about the spikes. Be careful walking around here."

"You've already done your part," Petra said to Arcadia. "I'll test the stairs." She sprang over the hole and began climbing upwards. The rest of the group was pleased to see her reach the top without incident.

"I guess the architect felt like giving us a break," Kurtis said before starting up.

Everyone else made it past the stairs in a short time. The second floor had another hallway. They could barely make out a door at the end of it. Though there were other doors around them, the hallway struck them as the most suspicious area.

"I will go first," Ellen said. "Follow me at a distance." She began to walk down the hallway.

When nothing happened, the group proceeded after her. Leigh came last in line. She was the only unlucky one who happened to step on a concealed switch. The soft click went unheard, but a rumble from the ceiling caused her to freeze.

Chasity, having been alert the entire time, reacted swiftly. She lunged at Leigh, knocking her out of the way as a stone slab fell where Leigh had been standing.

Ellen ran back to Leigh's side. "Are you all right?"

"Y-yes," Leigh said. "Thank you, Chasity."

"I promised your parents I'd look after you, and that's what I'm going to do," Chasity said. She stood up. "We're almost to the door. Start hoping that it's a safe one."

When they arrived at the door, Shane opened it. He withdrew his hand to look over it. "Nothing this time."

They looked into the next room to see that it was empty. Nothing stood out as they stepped inside.

"Don't tell me we went through all of that for nothing!" Kurtis groaned.

"It's starting to look that way," Courtney said as she began to lean against a wall.

Without warning, the wall flipped around, taking Courtney with it. Her surprised yelp was cut off by the sound of chains followed by a thump.

"Courtney!" Lance ran up to the wall and shoved against it. The stones did not budge.

"Courtney, can you hear me?" Leigh shouted.

Her muffled voice sounded panicky. "Quick, get me out of here! It's a guillotine!"

"A what?" Dennis exclaimed.

"Big blade that cuts off people's heads!" Jin kicked the wall. "Argh! This thing isn't moving at all!"

"Stand back!" Lance and Jin barely had time to get out of the way before Angela's hair slammed into the wall. The stone crumbled and fell apart, leaving a gap for them to see what was happening.

The guillotine stood in the center of the hidden room. Chains bound Courtney to it. The blade was already starting to fall before their eyes.

"No!"

Lance's cry was cut short by a horrible screech. Someone had appeared next to the guillotine and grabbed the blade. It shattered into pieces that fell to the floor, leaving Courtney unharmed.

The group rushed in with Lance and Naomi arriving by her first. "C-Courtney!" She threw her arms around Courtney. "T-thank goodness!"

While the two of them checked on her, everyone else was looking at her savior. Even though he looked to be in his mid teens, he had to be at least six feet tall. Only his head was uncovered by the silver chain mail he wore. Two black, rectangular pieces of armor with gold crosses sat on his shoulders. His breastplate, gauntlets, and leg guards matched the shoulder pieces. Since his head was visible, they could see he had short dark brown hair, dark blue eyes, and a skin color that clearly showed he was of Hispanic origins.

"I'm glad you are not hurt." The man pressed a button to the side of the device that caused the chains to release Courtney.

Though she was still shaky from the incident, Courtney managed to speak. "Who are you?"

"My name is Bastion. And you?"

"I'm Courtney, and these are my friends…" Courtney trailed off while looking at all of them. "It would take a while to introduce everyone."

Bastion glanced at each person. His gaze rested the longest on Shane, but he soon turned back to Courtney. "That's fine. Listen, you shouldn't be here. This castle is a dangerous place. Normally the traps would not be a problem with the safety protocols, but something has gone wrong in Teknisk Wereld. Harmless devices are now fatal. All of you should leave at once."

"What about you?" Leigh asked.

"I have been here many times. My knowledge will protect me, amongst other things." He tapped his armor lightly.

"At least he fits in," Kurtis muttered.

"We're fine with leaving, but tell us this," Chasity said. "Have you seen anyone here besides us? We were looking for someone."

"I'm afraid not. I've been alone until now."

Jin shook his head. "Guess we were on a wild goose chase after all."

"Then it's pointless to stay," Ace stated. "Let's get out of here."

"I hope you remain safe in your future trips to this world." Bastion turned to leave. Everyone was able to see a large red shield on his back that had a gold border and drawing of an eye in the center.

"Bastion?" He looked back at Courtney's words. "Thank you for saving me."

"I will do whatever I can to avoid senseless death." The group watched him walk out of the room.

"Just who was that guy?" Leigh wondered.

"Nobody ordinary, that's for sure," Lance said. "He caught a guillotine blade and broke it apart. He has to be incredibly strong."

"Or he used a support card ahead of time," Chasity mused. "Either way, I'm suspicious that he just happened to be in the neighborhood during this."

"Whatever the case may be, he saved me, and I'm grateful for that," Courtney said.

Shane changed the subject. "I think we've had enough excitement for one day."

"Awww, I want to play some more!" Angela protested.

"You'll get to play with your mom and dad," Leigh assured, which caused Angela to perk up.

"Where should we meet tomorrow?" Shane asked.

"The lakeshore seems to be a good meeting spot," Arcadia said. "Why not make that our permanent location?"

"That'd make things easier," Lance agreed. "Let's go with it."

"I'm off then. See you all tomorrow." Ace and Arcadia vanished, with Shane and Jin soon following suit. The others went afterwards.

---

A few rooms away, Bastion sat down on a large, wooden throne. He patiently waited until he heard soft footsteps from the back.

Bastion spoke without looking at the visitor. "Cassandra. Is everything going as you saw?"

The girl stepped in front of him, clutching her crystal ball to her chest. "As foreseen."

"Good. Now, what will happen next?"

---

Leigh, Kurtis, Courtney, Lance, Chasity, Angela, and their Soul Monsters returned from Teknisk Wereld without any problems. Five of them sat up in a groggy fashion while Angela began to happily bounce around the room.

"At least someone's in good spirits," Kurtis grumbled.

Courtney looked at the clock on the nearby wall. "It's almost time for my gymnastics class. I had better get going."

"Have a good time, Courtney," Leigh said.

"I'll try. It might be hard after all that's been happening." Courtney left without waiting for a response.

Leigh grabbed Angela in the middle of a jump. "I'd better get her back to Larka."

"Better you than me," Kurtis said.

After having the courtesy to stick her tongue out at him, Leigh led Angela outside. She knocked on the door of Zack and Larka's door. Larka answered seconds later.

"Hi Mommy!" Angela jumped up to wrap her arms around Larka's neck.

"It looks like you're in a good mood," Larka said. She tried to smile, but Leigh could tell her mind was on something else.

"What's wrong, Larka?"

Larka hesitated before answering. "It's Zack. I've looked for him all day without success. I'm sure he's somewhere in Teknisk Wereld, yet I can't find him."

"Daddy's in trouble?" Angela looked worried for the first time Leigh could remember.

"We don't know that," Larka said to try and reassure her. "It's in my nature to worry, that's all."

"How about we help you look for him tomorrow?" Leigh suggested. "We care about Zack too. Kurtis especially does."

"More help certainly couldn't hurt," Larka said. "Thank you. I'd be glad to have their assistance, and yours."

"We'll meet you tomorrow at the lake shore," Leigh said.

Larka nodded. "Okay. I'll bring Angela with me."

"Try not to worry too much," Leigh said.

"I'll try. Good night." Larka gently closed the door while Angela waved to Leigh.

Leigh walked back to her home to find Kurtis and Lance talking with Max and Hope. Hope broke off from the conversation to embrace Leigh. "Did you have a good day?"

"Mostly," Leigh said to avoid completely lying.

"I was asking Mom and Dad about locations they liked in Teknisk Wereld," Kurtis explained. "Thought it might be a good idea to visit them."

"My favorite location is the forest," Max said. "Especially a certain area with a certain tree…" He glanced at Hope, who smiled brightly. Whatever the connection was between them, Max did not go into any more detail. "The sky temple is a nice place too. I'd also recommend the tropical islands. I don't know them as well since they're a new area, but I like what I've seen of them."

"The forest is my favorite too, though the lake shore comes close," Hope said. "I visit both of them frequently to write. The atmosphere helps a lot. Other than that, you may want to visit the card shop in town. An old friend of ours, Hector, runs it. Tell him who your parents are and he may give you a discount."

"Sounds great," Lance said. "Thanks."

"So what did happen in the forest between you two?" Kurtis asked mischievously. "Is that where you first-"

"Kurtis, let's go watch some more Rozen Maiden! Come on!" Leigh dragged him away while ignoring his yelps. Lance followed with an amused expression.

---

When Courtney arrived at the gymnasium, she saw Brandi was coaching a few other students. She got dressed and came back out to begin stretching.

"Courtney?" Naomi said softly. "You seem nervous."

"Now that Mom's back, I have to be perfect," Courtney responded. "Not that I didn't try that before, but it matters a lot more when she's around. It's especially important because her career is over. I have to take over for her."

"But Courtney…"

Naomi fell silent as Brandi approached them. She knelt in front of Courtney and said, "Are you doing all right?"

"Yes, why?"

"Some of the other students said your practice sessions were shaky. I was concerned."

Though irritated at her companions for telling her mother that, Courtney forced herself to hide it. "I was just distracted. Something's been on my mind. It's not a big deal."

Brandi looked a bit puzzled, but stood up. "All right. Just remember that if you want to talk to me, you can at any time. I'll always listen."

"Thanks." Courtney watched her leave before silently rising.

"Courtney, you should do as she says," Naomi said. "Tell her you want to take some time off. She won't mind."

With a shake of her head, Courtney responded, "Stop saying that. You don't know my mother as well as I do."

Naomi remained quiet as Courtney went to practice. She did not dare bring up the subject again.

---

"I don't get it," Mana murmured. She continued to file paperwork in the gymnasium's office while musing. "What's got Courtney acting like that? I know Brandi's worried too. Hm… Ah well. Nothing I can do about it. At least she got through today's practice okay." She concealed a yawn while looking at the clock. "It's that late already? Brandi should be done closing up by now."

A sudden cry caused Mana to leap up. "Brandi!" She ran into the gym to see Brandi lying on the ground and clutching her knee. Mana wasted no time in helping her up. "Brandi, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. I hurt myself a bit trying a vault, that's all," Brandi responded.

Mana frowned. "Lilian told you not to put a lot of stress on that leg."

"I remember what Lilian said," Brandi said flatly. "I wanted to see for myself."

Not knowing how to respond, Mana could only assist Brandi in leaving the gym, locking it up, and helping her go back home.

To be continued…


	16. A Saving Gift

I haven't written a duel in so long. It was hard to get back into the mood, I'll tell you that much!

***Chapter Sixteen: A Saving Gift***

Courtney stood in front of her mother's door for a long moment, trying to gather enough strength to knock on her door and say what she needed to.

"It'll be okay," Naomi said to reassure her.

"Yeah. I know. I just…" Courtney sighed. "Better get this over with." She rapped on the door.

Brandi opened it. "What is it, Courtney?" She seemed sad, but a note of agitation was at the edge of her voice.

A bit nervous at her tone, Courtney made herself to continue. "I've… been kind of stressed at practice lately. I was hoping to take a break, just for today. If that's all right with you."

"I see. Yes, that's fine," Brandi said. "After what your classmates said, that might be for the best."

"Thanks," Courtney said, relieved that her mother had not pressed her for more details. "I'm going to hang out with Leigh, Kurtis, and Lance. See you tonight."

"Have a good time." Brandi went back into her room.

"See? That wasn't bad," Naomi said.

"It wasn't, but Mom was acting oddly." Courtney looked at the clock in the living room. "Not much we can do about it though. If we wait any longer, they'll go without us. Aunt Larka needs our help; this is the one day we can't be late."

Naomi nodded. "Right."

---

Kurtis and Lance spent their time before entering Teknisk Wereld talking while sitting on the couch. Leigh came in to hear Lance remarking, "You seem tired."

"I stayed up late last night…" Kurtis yawned before finishing. "...to make adjustments to my deck. It feels like I've worked on it for months!"

Leigh passed by them to answer the doorbell that she heard. She was not quick enough to make it before it got rung four more times in succession. She opened the door to see Larka restraining Angela, who was trying to press the button again.

"You only needed to do it once," Leigh said sourly. "We could hear it."

"Angela thought the button was fun to press," Courtney said in exasperation.

"I wanna do it again!" Angela wriggled in Larka's grip.

"You can have more fun later, Angela," Larka said. "Don't you want to find Daddy?"

She stopped struggling. "Yeah!"

"Then we need to get going. We'll play after that."

Satisfied with that promise, Angela made no more fuss as they went inside. Chasity had joined them by this time. "Are you all ready?"

"Yep. Mission: Find Uncle Zack commences now!" Kurtis declared as they all prepared to enter Teknisk Wereld.

---

Shane and Jin had barely arrived before their friends did. Shane went to greet them and was startled to see Larka as well. "It is good to see you again, Larka, but I didn't expect it."

"I'm here to look for Zack. He's been gone far longer than he should have been," Larka says.

Jin tilted his head. "You mean the cyborg that you hooked up with?"

"Jin!" Leigh said as Larka flushed. "You could have put it a bit more tactfully!"

"It's true though," Kurtis said. "Uncle Zack is a cyborg, and it makes him a lot cooler!"

"How did you know about him?" Dennis asked Jin.

"I read over Shane's shoulder sometimes," Jin said, floating over Shane to prove his point.

"So you think he's in trouble?" Ace asked as he and Arcadia walked over, having just arrived.

"On the off chance he ran into one of these 'Enslaved', I am concerned," Larka said. "Max said he was supposed to check out the canyon. We should try there first."

"What if we find that guy who attacked us before?" Lance asked. "Courtney nearly died because of him. We can't go running in without a plan."

"How about we take the low road?" Leigh suggested. "You know, deep in the canyon itself. Then we don't have to worry about being knocked off."

Larka shook her head. "Zack wouldn't go down there… Unless…" She grew pale. "Let's check. I hope he isn't there, but if he is…"

Courtney caught on to her fears. "You think he might have fallen?"

"Nobody would survive that!" Jin exclaimed.

"Nobody human," Ace corrected. "I wouldn't give up on someone made of metal that easily."

"We won't know until we look," Lance said. "If Zack really is in trouble, we don't have time to waste."

As they began to walk to the canyon, Kurtis asked, "How are we supposed to get down there, anyway?"

"Same way we got down the mountain!" Jin said with a grin.

Kurtis backed away from him. "No way! If you had activated your powers one second too late, we would have been pancakes!"

"I wouldn't let you guys drop! It worked last time, didn't it?" Jin pointed out.

Chasity was reluctant to admit it, but she said, "It did work. I can't deny that."

Kurtis put his hands over his face and groaned while Ace looked confused. "What are we talking about now?"

"You're about to see," Leigh said with a sigh.

They came to the edge of the canyon shortly after that conversation. Jin announced, "Now all you need to do is jump! I'll take care of the rest!"

"This is going to suck," Kurtis mumbled. He hurried to jump off though, remembering what Jin had done to get him moving last time.

Even though there were more people to lower and one of them was Epsilon, who was the heaviest of them, the wind Jin controlled lowered them all gently to the ground. Larka seemed impressed while Angela jumped up and down. "That was cool! Do it again, do it again!"

"I'm glad someone enjoys it!" Jin said, giving a pointed look to Kurtis.

Kurtis glared at him, but Courtney cut off the potential argument by saying, "We got down here safely. That's what's most important. Let's look for Zack now."

"At least we won't get lost down here," Lance commented as they began to walk. "One route only."

"It's a bit dark though," Leigh said. The sunlight from the top was mostly cut off by the towering rock walls. "Ellen, could you walk near the front?"

"Yes. I will light the way." She stepped forward, and her fiery wings and tail chased away many of the shadows.

"That's better," Courtney said while carefully avoiding a rock that she would have tripped over in the dark. "Good thinking, Leigh."

"Having a human torch is handy!" Dennis remarked. "…Or a horse torch. Whatever you want to call her."

"We really don't need any more injuries," Leigh said. "I was afraid we'd run into a wall or something."

In the faint light, they could see Larka's ears twitch. "I heard something moving ahead."

"Do you think it's…" Courtney trailed off.

Chasity finished her sentence. "The attacker from yesterday? Quite possible. We'll need someone sturdy in front now."

Without a word, Epsilon went in front of Ellen. Kurtis nodded in approval. "He stood up to it the best last time."

"Of course," Epsilon stated before going forward.

"Not very modest, is he?" Jin remarked.

"More factual than anything," Shane said. "It's not always matter of bragging when you really do possess the abilities you say you do."

Any further conversation was cut off by a sudden shout. "Now, Avance!"

A blast roared towards Epsilon, who was more than ready from Larka's prior warning. He shot back in response. The explosion of the colliding attacks caused the canyon to shake. Several rocks came loose, but Angela reacted at once to protect the group. Her hair surrounded them in an instant to form a dome that blocked the debris. It flicked back after, revealing who their attackers were.

The first they recognized at once as the machine from before, with its five cannons pointed towards them. The other was another Enslaved who wore an orb of fire. He had on a gray long-sleeved shirt, silver pants, and black shoes. His silver hair went to his shoulders and fell over his eyes, but they were bright enough to be visible through his bangs. One was blue while the other was eerily silver.

"You still refuse to die?" the man said, breathing heavily as he did. His rage was evident by his expression. "Then you will perish by other means! Duel me, now!"

"What's with him?" Kurtis asked. "Up until now, they've at least talked to us. But he seems so determined to kill!"

"Kanon." They looked at Shane in puzzlement, causing him to explain the name. "This man is Kanon, a General of Hell. He was described in the novels as having a silver eye and an XYZ Dragon Cannon soul monster. But when Rue dueled him, he did not act nearly as aggressively as he is now."

Larka, seeming nervous but determined, spoke to him. "Did you attack another person in this area?"

"I'll attack everyone I see! Come on, duel me before I get impatient enough to try again!" Kanon spat.

"He isn't going to listen to us, is he?" Leigh said with a sigh.

Kurtis went to stand next to Epsilon. "Then I'll just have to take his offer."

"Kurtis? I should be the one to duel him!" Larka protested. "I'm the reason we found him in the first place!"

"If this'll help us find Uncle Zack, I want to be the one to face him," Kurtis said. He grinned at her. "Don't worry. We've gotten this far despite being kids, haven't we? You guys weren't much older than us when you were fighting for your lives."

"That's…" Larka stopped to look at his expression before nodding. "All right."

"Even if he is a total goof, Kurtis knows what he's doing during duels," Leigh said to her. "All we have to do is trust in him."

Kurtis: 8000

Kanon: 8000

"I summon X-Head Cannon (1800/1500) and lay down two cards! Go!" The group barely had time to comprehend what he said before his monster was on the field.

"Hey, wait a minute!" Kurtis shouted. "We never agreed that you'd go first!"

"Go! Take your turn!"

Kurtis grumbled as he drew his card. "This guy's a total jerk. I'll just have to plan things out a bit more carefully. I'll put a monster in defense mode and lay down two cards. Your move."

The moment Kurtis was done, Kanon was already pulling his next card from his deck. "I summon Y-Dragon Head (1500/1600) and attack with X-Head Cannon!"

"Tricyler (300/300) is down," Kurtis said, seeming unconcerned as his monster was blasted away. "His effect allows me, when he is destroyed in battle, to special summon a Vehiclar from my hand or deck. I'll special summon him in defense mode from the deck." (200/200)

"Y-Dragon Head attacks it!"

"You really don't care about what I'm doing, do you?" Kurtis shrugged as he flipped over a card. "I'll activate my trap, Chaos Burst. I can use it when you declare an attack. By sacrificing a monster on my field, your attacking one is destroyed, and you lose 1000 Life Points. Also, Vehiclar gets shuffled in my deck since I special summoned him. That's Epsilon's effect."

Kanon did not react at all to his Life Point counter going down. "Go!"

Kurtis: 8000

Kanon: 7000

"I don't get this at all," Courtney said. "Why is he going on such a reckless offensive?"

"It doesn't fit what Mom wrote at all," Leigh agreed. "This is really strange."

"I'm not complaining," Kurtis said. "It's making him easy to read. I'll summon Cyber Vary (0/0) and lay two cards down. That's it for now."

"Weak!" Kanon yelled. "I activate Get Ride! to attach Y-Dragon Cannon from my Cemetery to X-Head Cannon, and then I use Formation Union to split them apart! I summon Jade Knight (1000/1800) and play Front Line Base to special summon Z-Metal Caterpillar! (1500/1300) Then I fuse them to form XYZ-Dragon Cannon!" (2800/2500)

A duplicate of his Soul Monster appeared and snarled at Kurtis. Leigh stared at it before giving her friends a helpless look. "I have no idea what just happened."

"Get Ride! lets a Union monster in the Cemetery attach to its counterpart," Shane explained. "Formation Union allows for a Union pair to either be joined or separated. Both are trap cards. Front Line Base is a continuous magic card that lets a Union monster of level four or lower be special summoned once a turn from the player's hand. XYZ-Dragon Cannon can be fused from its three parts without having an actual Fusion card."

"You know way too much about this game," Jin said to him. "Have you tried going outside once in a while?"

Kanon completely ignored the side conversation. "I discard a card in my hand to have XYZ-Dragon Cannon destroy one of your face-down cards!" He pointed at the middle one, which his monster obliterated instantly.

"There goes my Cracking Hatchet," Kurtis said with a sigh.

"Jade Knight attacks your monster!"

"You should ask what my monsters do before you try that," Kurtis told him. "I'm going to activate one of Cyber Vary's abilities. When he is the target of an attack, I can remove him from the game to end the battle phase and draw a card."

"Go!"

"Nothing fazes you, does it?" Kurtis muttered. "I'll summon Blue Thunder T45 (1700/1000) and attack Jade Knight."

Kurtis: 8000

Kanon: 6300

When Jade Knight was destroyed, Kanon grabbed a card from his deck and showed it to Kurtis. "You destroying Jade Knight let me get W-Wing Catapult!"

"Right," Kurtis said with a nod. "If I destroy Jade Knight in battle when it is face-up, you get to find a level four Light and Machine in your deck to put in your hand. I've got an advantage too though. When Blue Thunder T45 destroys a monster, I get to special summon a Thunder Option Token. (1500/1500) I'll lay a card down before ending my turn."

Kanon grinned fiercely as he slapped down his cards for the turn. "I summon V-Tiger Jet (1600/1800) and use Front Line Base for W-Wing Catapult! (1300/1500) I fuse them to form VW-Tiger Catapult (2000/1500) and then fuse VW-Tiger Catapult and XYZ-Dragon Cannon to create VWXYZ-Dragon Catapult Cannon!" (3000/2800)

The monstrosity that appeared before them, towering even the XYZ-Dragon Cannon, caused most of the viewers to be shocked. Kurtis merely shrugged. "Well, duh, of course you're going to use that. And I'm betting you'll use its effect now, which is to remove any card of mine that you want once per turn."

"Yes, that one!" Kanon once more pointed at his center face-down card.

"I'll be chaining it before it gets removed." Kurtis turned it over. "Alchemy Cycle is a trap that lowers all of my monster's attacks to zero for this turn. If one affected by that gets destroyed in battle, I draw a card." (0/1000) (0/1500)

"What? That's suicide!" Dennis exclaimed.

"Kurtis has 8000 Life Points still," Chasity said. "In this case, an extra card could help far more than taking less damage. If he can't come up with a way to get rid of that beast, he's as good as gone. He can't even play monsters in defense mode; this thing can change their modes before attacking."

"Just as you said," Kurtis agreed. "I have an idea, but I need a certain card to pull it off."

"Fool! VWXYZ-Dragon Catapult Cannon attacks!" The mechanical creature's lasers shot out to completely incinerate Blue Thunder 45. Kurtis took a heavy hit and nearly fell over from the force, but his preparation had helped him brace himself for the attack.

Kurtis: 5000

Kanon: 6300

"I'll take my card." Kurtis drew it and frowned. "Not quite, but almost…"

"Go! Hurry and go, so I can destroy you!" Kanon said with a sadistic glee.

"Geez, you're impatient. Hang on a second." Kurtis drew his card for the turn and smiled at seeing it. "Perfect." He looked at Leigh and Courtney. "Thanks for the gift, guys."

Courtney looked surprised while Leigh's breath caught in her throat. "You mean you wanted…"

"That's right, I'm bringing out my trump card! But first I need a bit of help!" He placed a magic card on his disk. "Star Blast lets me pay as many Life Points as I want to, in increments of 500, to lower the level of a monster in my hand or on the field. I'll pay 2000 to lower this monster by four stars. That means that I don't need to sacrifice anything to summon Perfect Machine King!" (2700/1500)

The larger and more powerful version of Epsilon was impressive to behold, but Kanon merely said, "It's too weak!"

"Not with his ability. For every Machine on the field except for himself, he gets 500 attack! (3700/1500) I'll boost this up by activating Cry of the Living Dead to bring back Blue Thunder 45 from my Cemetery! Then I activate another trap, Limit Reverse! It allows me to special summon a monster with 1000 or less attack from my Cemetery in attack mode, so I bring out Tricyler! (4700/1500) Finally, I'll play Tribe United! When all of the monsters in my Cemetery are of one type, the monsters on my field get 800 added to their attacks! (5400/1500) (2500/1000) (2300/1500) (1100/300) Perfect Machine King attacks your monster, and everything else will attack directly!"

The attack the Perfect Machine King used was so powerful that it tore through the bigger monster without any trouble. The other three monsters led up with their own attacks, sending Kanon crashing to the ground.

Kurtis: 5000

Kanon: 0

"Such…" Kanon struggled to rise, and for the first time, he did not appear to be completely crazed. "Such power…"

Kurtis started to approach him. "Are you back to normal?"

Kanon had no chance to respond before turning to dust. His Soul Monster followed him at once.

"And so he leaves without giving us any answers," Ace remarked. "Too bad."

"At least Kurtis got through without an issue," Lance said. "We're all in one piece."

"I'm impressed!" Leigh said to Kurtis as he returned to them. "You really did improve your deck!"

"I liked my old one, but now that we're playing for such high stakes, I needed something better," Kurtis explained. "It took a long time, but it was worth it."

"We can tell," Courtney said.

Larka spoke up after a brief silence. "Thank you, Kurtis."

"Anything to help you and Uncle Zack," Kurtis said. "Now that Mr. Crazy is out of our way, let's go find him!"

"Agreed," Ellen said. "I will take the lead again."

Even though Ellen was at the front for the next few minutes, Larka was the first to spot the figure on the ground ahead. She ran up to him at once. "Zack!"

"Is he okay?" Kurtis asked anxiously as Larka examined him.

"He… must have fallen, as I feared." Her expression tightened as she looked closer. "There's no way to know until we get him home…"

Angela, for the first time since they had seen her, appeared concerned. "Daddy?"

Larka forced herself to smile at Angela. "He'll be okay. You'll see."

"Okay," Angela said, appearing better. "If Mommy says so."

Ace had knelt down to look at him as well. "So this is…"

"Is something wrong?" Shane asked him.

"No. I was just thinking." Ace stood again to address the group. "Larka, you should get him home. But it's still early for us. We can keep going, if everyone's up for it."

"I am, and I don't think anyone else has a reason to be against it," Kurtis pointed out.

"Is that okay with you, Aunt Larka?" Courtney said to her.

"I still do not like the idea of you placing yourselves in harm's way, but I trust in your ability, and Chasity's guidance." Larka smiled at Chasity's surprise at this praise. "Angela, would you like to stay with them?"

"Yes. I'll see Daddy when I get home," Angela said.

"Then I will take Zack to get help. See you later, everyone." Larka hit a few buttons on Zack's and her Duel Disk, causing them to vanish.

---

"Now what is the issue?" The woman paced the room, musing to herself. "The weakness from the last batch is gone, but that one was too violent. It affected the ability to rationalize." She nodded in response to words that nobody could hear, even if she had company. "We are close. The perfect formula is nearly at hand."

To be continued…


	17. Haunting Experiences

They say (whoever they are) that whatever you do during New Year's Day is something you will do for the rest of the year. I really hope so because my fics need updating so badly. It's been almost two years since this one got an update, and I knew what had to be written for most of it. I'll do what I can to keep updating.

***Chapter Seventeen: Haunting Experiences***

The group stared at where Larka and Zack had been. Leigh broke the silence by saying, "I hope he'll be all right."

Kurtis' previous worries for his role model had vanished at Larka's words. "Uncle Zack's really strong. I'm sure he'll recover soon."

"Fretting about it won't get us anywhere," Chasity added. "Larka will take care of him. Let's focus on the next location we need to visit."

"Do you have any strong feelings about where to go next?" Shane asked.

"I think some new sections were recently added beyond the canyon," Chasity replied. "I don't remember what they are, but it would be close by."

"I'd like to see some more places that weren't in the books," Kurtis declared. "So let's go there!"

Leigh looked up the steep cliff walls. "But how do we get back up?"

"Well, we could use the same methods that the books described." Shane held up a Time Capsule card. "These would teleport us a fair distance."

"Wait a minute!" Kurtis protested. "Why didn't we just do that instead of having Jin lower us down?"

"Because my way is quicker!" Jin said with a grin. "And it's more fun!"

"It also saved our cards for use to get back up," Shane added before Kurtis could argue. "I don't think we have enough copies for two trips in one day."

"Maybe we should pick up more for future use," Lance suggested as he searched his spare cards for one.

"Mom did mention Hector's card shop," Leigh recalled. "Maybe we should go there tomorrow."

"Yeah, that's not a bad idea." Courtney produced a Time Capsule of her own. "But we should be okay for the rest of today."

"Does everyone have one?" Shane looked around to see that all but Angela had produced the necessary card. "Ah. I might have a spare for you…"

"I don't need one!" After that cheerful response, her hair whipped out to grab some of the protruding rocks on the wall. She effortlessly pulled herself up and continued to bound towards the top. Before she got too far, Sera vanished into her Soul Card to easily follow.

"I know I shouldn't be surprised by what she can do, but she keeps managing it," Leigh said.

"You probably don't need to use one either," Courtney pointed out. "You could ride on Ellen."

"That's true. Do you mind?" Leigh asked Ellen.

"Of course not," she stated. "I will always be happy to carry you wherever you want."

"Then let's go! See you all up there! Hey Dennis, I'll race you!" Jin proceeded to propel himself directly upwards.

Dennis shook a fist at him and tried to catch up while shouting, "No head starts, you cheater!"

Even though Naomi could have gone along, she went into her Soul Card with the rest of the Soul Monsters. The Time Capsules arrived at the top of the canyon shortly after Leigh dismounted Ellen. Once the rest of their Soul Monsters were brought back out, they looked ahead. There was nothing to signify what the next location would be.

"Let's hope it isn't too far," Leigh said as they started walking.

"If it was, it would be unusual," Chasity responded. "Locations are kept close so that people who want to visit a lot of them can do so without much travel."

"In addition, many more of the teleportation stones were made," Shane said. "That lets anyone who wants to get somewhere else quickly do so, if they have the right card for it."

Lance considered that. "I guess there hasn't really been a need for us to use one yet. But when we run out of nearby locations, we'll have to try one out."

"I wouldn't mind seeing the sky temple sometime soon," Leigh said. "It's supposed to be a really pretty place."

"Aunt Larka told me once that it was her favorite location," Courtney recalled.

"Uncle Zack said that too," Kurtis said. "Three guesses as to why."

"That isn't a surprise, considering that's where they finally confessed to each other." Lance thought for a moment. "My parents didn't have a monumental moment like that, but I think one reason they like the mountains so much is because they spent a lot of time together there."

"That and they like flying a lot," Kurtis pointed out.

"That does help," Lance agreed. "But having emotional connections makes those locations more significant."

"I wonder if we'll feel that way about any of the places here," Leigh said thoughtfully. "Chasity, do you have a location you really like in Teknisk Wereld?"  
"For reasons like that? No," Chasity stated. "I like being by the lake, but not because of any sort of emotional experience there."

"I can relate to that," Shane said. "Even though I enjoy many of the locations, I think the forest might be my favorite. Other than spending time there with my mentor, however, I don't have any specific reason to."

"I don't see why you need to have one," Ace remarked. "There's no reason to only like being somewhere if it has emotional meaning to you. Though it can be a factor, as Lance said."

"Do you have a favorite location?" Lance asked.

"Not particularly. Maybe I'm waiting for that connection you mentioned." Ace shrugged. "I like a lot of places, but having a favorite, no."

"We'll have to see if any of the rest of us gets attached to a location," Leigh said.

"Uh, guys?" Jin spoke up from ahead. "Not that your conversation isn't fascinating and all, but there's something weird ahead."

The rest of the group looked forward to see what he spoke of. The sky before them had become clouded over, making the entire area ahead much darker than the previous ones. The dirt had given way to grass, but it appeared tangled and unhealthy. While a few trees were present, they were black and leafless with twisted branches and trunks. These factors all stood out. However, it was clear that Jin was referring specifically to the foreboding structure that towered on a hill a distance away. It appeared to be an old mansion with a black iron gate around the base of the hill. As they stared at it, an ominous rumble of thunder sounded from above.

"That has got to be the most cliché haunted mansion I have ever seen," Kurtis stated.

"H-haunted mansion?" Naomi asked nervously.

Kurtis threw his hands in the air. "Come on, look at it! What else could it be?"

"But why would that be a location in Teknisk Wereld?" Leigh wondered.

"It's one of the newer ones," Chasity said. "I'm not sure what their purpose was in making it. I never bothered looking for it since I wasn't interested."

"Still, that looks like a perfect location for a villain to hide in!" Dennis declared. "We should go in and look!"

Naomi's eyes widened. "B-but… It looks s-scary…"

"Don't worry, we'll be fine!" Jin said cheerfully. "We'll just have to watch out for ghosts hanging around!"

"G-ghosts?" Naomi shrank back behind Courtney.

"If we encounter wild monsters in there, most likely they will be ghosts," Chasity agreed. "I have some support cards for handling them, and our Soul Monsters can fend them off if necessary."

"She's right," Courtney said to Naomi. "You don't have to be scared of ghost monsters. They're like any other, really."

"E-except they're s-scary," Naomi murmured.

"You think everything is scary," Petra snapped. "If we're going to do this, let's get it over with." She strode forward before anyone could reply to her.

"It would be best to get through this area quickly," Shane said. "Let's go, but be cautious."

Chasity nodded. "As we always should be."

"Sorry, can't hear you guys over how stereotypical this place is!" Kurtis joked.

They started towards the gate as Leigh said, "I have to admit, they could have done without the thunder. That pushes it a bit too far."

"It could be legitimately about to rain," Courtney suggested.

"Nah, it's just for effect."

The moment Kurtis said those words, rain began to pour heavily.

"I should have known better than to say that!" Kurtis exclaimed as they ran toward the gate.

"Way to jinx it!" Dennis complained from where he clung to Lance's shoulder.

Chasity shoved on the door of the gate. It swung open with a loud creak. "At least they made it easy to enter."

Leigh went by her while saying, "Yeah, now let's get inside!" Everyone else was quick to follow her to the front porch, where she flung the door open. It was large enough for even Epsilon to enter without difficulty.

Once they had all entered, the door blew shut behind them. The large front room had nothing to offer that they could see besides some small tables that held lit candles. The light they gave only illuminated a little of the area. Their vision was enhanced when Ellen stepped forward with her mane and tail flaring. An empty coat rack and wooden door across from them were revealed, but nothing else.

"Just for effect, huh?" Courtney said sourly.

Kurtis sighed. "I know, I know, it's all my fault."

"We were fortunate to be close enough to reach shelter quickly," Shane remarked as he wrung the water out of his hair. It proved to be unnecessary in a few moments, as the heat generated from Ellen's flames were enough to dry them from their brief encounter with the storm.

"Now there really isn't much of an option," Leigh said. "We can either explore this place or get drenched outside."

"It's not like the rain changes our plans," Lance replied. "Let's proceed as we originally planned."

Chasity eyed the door ahead of them warily before approaching it. "Stick close together. We don't know what sort of hazards will be in this place."

"Especially if an Enslaved is here," Leigh added.

Dennis snorted. "Like I said, this place is begging for one of those creeps to be around."

"Isn't that the same thing we thought about the castle?" Courtney pointed out.

"Second time's the charm! Or something like that. Let's get moving!" Jin said.

When she saw that everyone was ready, Chasity slowly opened the door. A pitch black room met their eyes. Even when Ellen approached the doorway, her flames did not show enough for them to see anything.

"Hold on, I have something for this." Chasity slid a card into her Duel Disk. It caused her index finger to begin brightly glowing. She directed to her four charges, "If you don't have Dark Piercing Light yet, we should pick some of those up for you. They're useful."

"This one's all yours," Jin said to Kurtis.

He did not hesitate to say, "This hand of mine glows with an awesome power!"

"Sometimes I wonder how I'm related to him," Leigh muttered to Courtney, who nodded sympathetically.

Chasity held up her hand. The intense light from her card revealed that the room had absolutely nothing inside of it. Not even a door existed to show a way to proceed.

"What? There's no way that this huge mansion only has two rooms!" Dennis exclaimed.

"There's got to be some sort of hidden door," Kurtis said. "With how stereotypical the rest of this place is, I'd be surprised if there wasn't."

"Whether there is or not, we won't get anywhere unless we check it out," Lance said. "Should we enter?"

"I'll go first. It doesn't appear dangerous, but stay on guard." With those instructions, Chasity entered the room. When the rest of the group saw nothing happen to her, they went in as well.

"So what do we do now? Start poking walls with a sword?" Jin asked.

Leigh blinked. "I think knocking on them would be more effective."

"Are you really the human here who plays video games?" Jin directed to Kurtis.

"Sad, isn't it?" Kurtis said.

Lance shook his head. "How quickly you forget my own gaming experiences."

"To be fair, we're all sort of playing a video game now," Courtney added.

"Teknisk Wereld totally doesn't-"

Kurtis was cut off by the door slamming shut. Naomi yelped and hid behind Courtney while Leigh whirled around to try the knob. She discovered it would not budge.

"Okay, I should have seen that coming," Dennis admitted.

"W-we're t-trapped!" Naomi squeaked.

Courtney gave her an exasperated look. "Don't worry. We have lots of support cards to get out of here."

"If worst comes to worst, Angela can knock it down too," Lance said. "If she was able to destroy that stone castle wall, I can't imagine this old wood would give her any trouble."

"Yep! I can get rid of it!" Angela's hair whipped up, ready to strike the obstacle down.

Before she could continue, a mist suddenly crept in from the cracks in the floor, walls, and ceiling. Though it did not move quickly, it flowed from so many locations that everyone was quickly blinded. Even Chasity's light could not cut through the grayness.

"What's going on?" Leigh cried.

Nobody had a chance to answer. The mist encased them totally, and they all felt themselves vanish.

...

When the mist left, Leigh saw that she was standing in a bedroom. A king-sized bed with red sheets and drapes was covered in dust, and the nightstand beside it had a stubby candle surrounded by melted wax. She also noticed a window that showed nothing but rain pouring down it.

"What was that?" Though she did not expect to see anything new, Leigh looked around the room once more. "Where did everyone else go?"

The pattering raindrops were her only answer. She approached the window, but visibility through it did not improve as she got closer. Uneasy at the entire situation, Leigh turned to face the only door in the bedroom. "I have to find them. Even if there may be dangerous things in this place, I won't get anywhere staying here."

Though her mind was made up, Leigh did not have a chance to go toward the door. It creaked open without preamble to reveal a teenage boy. His appearance sent a chill through her. The clothing he wore was foreboding, being a dark blue t-shirt and jeans, a long black trench coat, and black boots that went up to his knees. Though he only looked a few years older than her, he was several inches taller. His blue hair stood out against his pale white skin. All of this affected Leigh, but it was his red eyes that made the biggest impact. They had an edge that made her even more nervous.

As she saw him, she was surprised to see him suddenly appear confused. He muttered something that she could not fully make out over the storm outside. As best as she could tell, it sounded like he had said, "Leigh?"

"Huh?" Hesitatingly, Leigh asked, "Do you know me?"

The boy's focus on her intensified. He spoke in a louder tone. "No, it can't be. You are…"

When he did not continue, Leigh said, "I don't understand what you're saying."

Instead of responding with words, the boy's eyes began to glow. A strange feeling came over Leigh. There was something important she had to consider, to think about, but it was eluding her. She barely heard him speak over the mental fog that had clouded her brain. "Nobody should look like her. Most certainly not you."

While Leigh did make out his statement, it slipped away from her as quickly as the water was going down the glass outside. She dully watched as the boy approached her. The scenario seemed wrong, as if she should be concerned. But she did not comprehend this fully, even as the boy grasped her shoulders in his hands. It was only when a sharp pain went through her neck that Leigh fully understood that she was in danger. By that point, it was too late to do anything about it. The last thing she saw before collapsing was the boy's face, with his mouth now covered in blood.

...

"Ugh…" Kurtis shook his head as the mist evaporated. "That was weird. Anyone know what happened?"

The only reply he got was his voice echoing. He looked around in alarm to see he was in a stone hallway. Two torches dimly lit the section he was in. Both paths he could go down were too dark to tell what was there.

"Oh great." Kurtis sighed. "I'm alone in a creepy dark underground place. Any moment now, zombies are going to try eating my brains." He started to walk in the direction he was facing. "Maybe they landed close by. I sure hope so. This is definitely the reason we should never split the party."

The shadowy hallway led to a split that each had a dim light further in. He took the route to his right, only to find another split at the end of that. "Great, a labyrinth," he grumbled as he went right again. "This is why I hate first-person horror games. All I need now is for a sinister voice to ask me if I'm feeling lonely when I hit a dead-end."

Several more twists and turns later, Kurtis came to the dead end he had feared. Lying on the floor, barely visible from the torch on each wall, was a rotting coffin. Kurtis eyed it for a moment before backing out and going a different direction. "No way am I opening that. For every game that would give you an elixir for doing something dumb like that, ten others would have a corpse jump at you."

Kurtis ran into one more dead end with another coffin as he explored. Like before, he left the item alone. The next location he found was a damp room with nothing separating it from the maze besides a small archway. Dozens of coffins littered the floor. Most were closed, but a few of the coffins had slightly open lids. From one nearby, Kurtis could make out what was most likely an arm and hand lying limply over the side. Due to extreme decay, he could not be totally sure to what appendage it was.

"Ewww. It's not just a labyrinth, it's a labyrinth with a crypt." Kurtis began to turn. "Welp, I think it's time to hit the ol' dusty trail…"

He trailed off at seeing someone by a set of nearby coffins. It was a tall girl wearing nothing but a torn white nightgown. Her finger and toenails were grown out and appeared sharp. Her black hair fell down her back, and all over her incredibly pale white skin was dried blood stains. She had her back to Kurtis and was not moving.

"Huh? Hey, were you there before?" Kurtis frowned as she did not respond. He approached her while saying, "Can you hear me? Hello?"

Even when he was five feet away, the girl still did not move. Now even more confused, Kurtis stopped and considered what to do next. "What's up with her? Is she just ignoring me, or is she really deaf?"

As he pondered, the girl suddenly whipped her head around to face him. Her brown eyes sharply focused on him. Then her mouth twisted into an eerie smirk as she slowly approached him.

"Oh crap," Kurtis muttered. He raised his voice to try and speak with her once more. "Can't we talk this out? I just wanted to know who you-"

His eyes widened as the girl suddenly lunged at him. He had no time to react before she passed right through him. The girl vanished into the floor as he remained paralyzed.

Seconds later, Kurtis shook his head. "What was I doing again? Oh, right, getting out of the creepy crypt. Yeah, let's do that before I get attacked by something." He proceeded to leave with no further thoughts than wanting to find his friends.

...

Courtney had a moment of distortion when she reappeared in another room. It had a writing desk, a chair, and a bookcase with only a few old volumes on its shelves. Petra stood beside her, but nobody else was present.

"Where are we?" Courtney asked.

Petra made a noise of exasperation. "Something caused us to be split up. How irritating."

This conclusion caused Courtney to look around again. Nothing new stood out. "Did an Enslaved do it?"

"While possible, I doubt it. It's more likely that this is how to get further into the mansion," Petra stated. "However, if there is an Enslaved here, we need to regroup quickly."

"Definitely." Courtney approached the door and opened it. A dark hallway stretched out in front of her. "Let's start searching."

"Proceed carefully," Petra said as they left the room. "We don't know what other sorts of traps might be here."

Courtney nodded. "Yeah. I hope everyone else thinks that way. Especially Kurtis."

"I would not hold my breath on him," Petra said dryly. "He is the main reason I wish to find Chasity before long."

"What do you mean?"

Hearing Courtney's confusion, Petra elaborated. "Chasity is going to worry about him since he could get into trouble easily. She will worry about all of you, but Kurtis is at the most risk."

"Chasity, worry about us?" Courtney echoed. "Doesn't she hate taking care of us?"

Petra snorted at her bewildered expression. "She says she loathes being a babysitter. That doesn't change the fact that she'd go berserk if any of you were hurt. Chasity cares about you more than she would ever let on."

"That's a bit hard to believe," Courtney said. She seemed to be considering Petra's words though.

Petra stopped walking to state, "Chasity has seen enough pain caused in Teknisk Wereld. She would never want any of you to go through such agony."

Courtney, who had continued, looked back to say. "I'm not sure I understand."

"Never mind. It's nothing you need to think of."

"But-"

Courtney had no chance to continue. As she stepped forward, three spears burst from each wall. In a flash, Petra had lunged forward to grab her. They landed roughly a few feet further from the deadly points.

"Damn it, this is why I told you to be careful!" Petra snapped.

Still in shock, Courtney barely managed to stammer, "You… You saved me."

"Of course I did. Chasity isn't the only one who's trying to keep you brats safe." Petra pulled her upright. "So do me a favor and try to keep yourself out of trouble. It makes our job easier."

After a moment of silence, Courtney smiled at her. "All right. I'll do that."

"Good." Petra strode ahead. "Follow behind me. If anything else like that happens, I have a better chance of dodging it."

"Thanks." Courtney followed her, silently wondering about what Petra had said.

...

The hallway that Lance appeared in was barely visible from the lack of light. Only a window at the halfway point gave any sort of ability to see, and that was limited due to the storm outside. He could barely make out Naomi nearby.

"C-Courtney!" Naomi looked around wildly. "W-where is she?"

"We seem to have been separated," Lance said.

In an even more panicked voice, Naomi squeaked out the word, "S-s-separated?"

Despite feeling uneasy about the situation, Lance spoke calmly. "Don't worry. We'll find them. They can't be too far."

"B-but… But…"

Lance held up a hand to stop her. "Even if the mansion is bigger than most houses, it still won't take much time to search all of the rooms. They'll be looking for us too, so we should meet up fairly quickly."

Naomi slowly nodded. "M-maybe…"

"It won't help us to stay here and fret over it. If we start searching now, we have a better chance of finding them sooner." Lance indicated down the hallway. "Let's go down there. If it doesn't lead us to anyone, we'll try the other way."

When Lance went the way he had said, Naomi nervously trailed behind him. Nothing of event occurred in the hall. They made it to a door at the end that Lance opened. It revealed a large room full of bookcases. Entering with care, they saw that all of the shelves were crammed with a mix of hardcover and paperback novels. Two old chairs were further in. A low table sat between them. There was no sign of anything else.

"I don't think anyone is here," Lance said.

"O-oh…" Naomi walked by him. "C-Courtney? Are you here? Please be here…"

As she went by a further bookcase, it emitted a loud creak. Naomi froze as it began to fall forward. She would have been crushed if not for Lance reacting. He tackled her, and though they hit the ground with a thud, it was preferable to the alternative. The bookcase brutally slammed into the ground and flew apart in a shower of wood and paper.

"Naomi! Are you all right?" Lance hurriedly checked on her to see that she was badly shaken, but not injured.

"Y-y-y... Yes…" He barely heard Naomi whisper her response.

"That was close." Lance stood and helped her up. "I didn't think something like that would happen."

"I… I…" Naomi suddenly burst into tears.

"Naomi?" he said in concern.

"I-I'm a Soul Monster… I should be protecting Courtney! I should be protecting everyone! B-but… I keep getting saved…" She broke off and continued sobbing.

"Naomi…" Lance put his hand on her shoulder. "You did save Courtney. She would have died from falling down the canyon if you hadn't gone after her."

"N-no… Larka s-saved her…" Naomi whimpered.

"Larka wouldn't have gotten to her in time if not for you," Lance said.

She did not appear convinced. "I… I h-had to be s-saved with her…"

"It's because of you that Courtney's still alive. Naomi, look at me." Lance gently pried her chin up. "I am saying this now, since I didn't get to earlier. As Courtney's friend, I thank you for saving her. I don't know what I would've done if she had died from that fall. I'm grateful to not have to think about it, and that result is from you."

"I…" Naomi wiped her face clumsily with her wings. "T-thank y-you… but…"

"But nothing," Lance said firmly. "You saved her then, and if it's ever necessary, you will again. I know that."

Naomi remained silent for a long moment before saying, "L-let's keep looking. I-I'm worried about h-her."

"Yeah. We should continue." He let the matter drop, but hoped that his words had at least helped somewhat.

...

Once Chasity could see again, she found that she was in a room full of statues. Many were of Undead that she was familiar with as cards. Chasity did not bother with identifying them closely, choosing to concern herself with whether the rest of the group was all right. When she saw Arcadia in the room and nobody else, she swore under her breath.

Either he did not hear her remark or chose not to say anything about it. His only response was to say, "Are you unharmed?"

"Do I look harmed to you?" Chasity snapped. "Forget about that. I need to find them before they get into trouble."

"Yes, we should head out at once." Arcadia spoke without any trace of being offended by her short words. "Hopefully they are nearby."

"Hoping is pointless. I have to make sure they're okay." Chasity went toward the door.

The route to the exit took Chasity by a statue of a creature that had no lower body. Everything up from its torso was present and skeletal in appearance. It clutched a small scythe in its right hand. As Chasity went underneath it, the arm suddenly broke off the statue. The scythe whistled down from where it was broken off.

"Lady Chasity, above you!" Arcadia shouted.

Though he drew his sword and ran forward, he was too far to help. His warning caused Chasity to look up, which was enough time for her to save herself. She slid a card into her Duel Disk, and a clear barrier deflected the statue piece to send it skidding across the floor. The barrier vanished as the statue began to crack further. Arcadia jumped in front of her and held up his shield to deflect another large chunk. The rest swiftly followed, but by that time, Chasity had pulled out another Attack Nullification to protect them from the rest of it.

"You have good reflexes," Arcadia said as he lowered his shield, looking none worse for the wear.

Chasity glared at him. "That was stupid of you! I was fine on my own."

"My apologies. I was reacting on instinct," Arcadia stated.

"Don't give me that! I won't accept that kind of an excuse!" Chasity angrily walked by him. "And don't you dare call me 'Lady' again! You sound as bad as he does calling me 'Miss'!"

She stopped short as Arcadia quietly responded. "Do you hate Lord Ace that much?"

"It doesn't matter."

"It matters to him." Arcadia went to stand beside her. "I do not want you to hate me. However, my feelings are insignificant compared to Lord Ace's. I want him to be happy. You accepting him would do that."

"Why the hell does he care?" Chasity spoke without looking at Arcadia.

"Because he has been without friends for all of his life," Arcadia said evenly. "I believe the people in this group are his first chance to have a chance for companions. All of them accept him for who he is. However, as long as you oppose him being here, he will not feel completely welcome. If you make it clear that you do not want him around, Lord Ace will eventually leave, even if he greatly wishes to stay."

Chasity frowned slightly. "I told him he could stay. I'm not comfortable with him being here, but he's pretty much proven he's on our side. He wouldn't have tried to save Shane otherwise."  
"I am glad you think that." Arcadia reached for the door handle and opened it to reveal a dark hallway. "But I am not the person who needs to hear it. Please, tell Lord Ace that you do not mind him remaining with all of you."

"Why don't you tell him?" Chasity said as she left the room with him.

"Even though he would know I was not lying, it would not be as meaningful for me to say it. You would dispel his doubts by saying that you trust him enough to see him as an ally." When Chasity remained silent, he solemnly said, "This is the only request I will ask of you. I beg you to at least consider it. It would mean so much to him."

They were halfway down the hallway before Chasity finally responded. "I'll think it over. That's all I'm going to do for now."

"Thank you." Arcadia said nothing else as they continued.

When they arrived at a split, Chasity muttered, "Damn it. I don't have time to be guessing like this." She went left without giving herself time to second guess the decision.

Arcadia went after her. "That is admirable."

"What is?" Chasity said without slowing down.

"You care deeply for your charges. They have a good guardian," he stated.

"Flattery won't win me over." Though she said that, her tone was somewhat softer.

"I am simply stating what I feel." He suddenly paused. "Did you hear that?"

Chasity reached for her sai. "What?"

"It sounded like footsteps. Come this way."

They proceeded in the direction Arcadia spoke of. A couple of turns later, they arrived in front of a door. Chasity opened it with caution.

Both of them saw that it was a bedroom. However, their attention was taken up by the person lying on the floor. Leigh had a large wound on her neck that blood was pouring from thickly. Her ragged breathing showed that she was alive, but barely.

"Leigh!" Chasity was by her side in an instant. She pulled out a card while mumbling, "Don't you dare die on me." The Compensation of Blood was inserted into her Duel Disk, and the bleeding slowed. Chasity then produced three Red Potions and tilted Leigh's head up to try pouring them into her mouth. The first caused the wound to start scabbing over. The second made it fade somewhat. The third closed the skin completely and left no indication that she had been injured.

"Will she be all right?" Arcadia asked.

"She will be," Chasity said. "I promised them that she would be."

Arcadia did not ask who she meant. He focused on being their guard as Chasity continued to check her young companion.

...

Shane and Ace found themselves in what appeared to be a large dining room. It had a long table with several chairs. In front of each sat a dusty plate and silverware. Two doors were present, with Epsilon standing beside one.

"Well, I can't say I expected that," Ace remarked. "You two okay?"

"Yes, it seems like we weren't hurt by whatever divided us," Shane responded.

"I am at one hundred percent efficiency, gambler," Epsilon stated.

"Gambler?" Ace muttered. He raised his voice to say, "Ah, never mind. What matters is finding everyone else."

"If there are such traps throughout this mansion, it seems unlikely an Enslaved is here," Shane said. "But even if one is not here, those traps are dangerous. We should try to regroup as fast as possible."

"Either of these ways look particularly good to you?" Ace asked.

Shane indicated to the door by Epsilon. "We may as well start with that one."

Epsilon went through the door first. He proceeded down the hallway as Shane and Ace followed him closely. As they walked, Shane spoke up. "I know I said it before, but I want to say it again. Thank you for saving me at the frozen lake."

"It wasn't much, really," Ace said awkwardly.

"Jin told me what happened." Shane turned his gaze to Ace as he said, "I appreciate what everyone did to help me. But you nearly risked your own life before that girl appeared. You could have drowned while searching, with little chance of finding me in time. Even so, you didn't hesitate at the idea of trying. So thank you. It means a lot to me."

"Geez, you know how to make something sound more impressive than it is." Ace pulled his hat brim lower as he said this, most likely to hide his embarrassed expression.

Shane considered his next words before speaking again. "I trusted you when you helped us the first time. Nothing has caused that trust to fade. I hope you'll remember that no matter what might happen, I consider you a trusted friend."

"…Shane, I…" Ace fell silent, and then said softly, "Thanks. That means a lot to me."

By this time, they had reached another door. Shane nodded to Ace's words before opening it. It revealed a huge ballroom. Red drapes hung around the large windows, and a large chandelier hung over the center of the floor. All of the candles on it were out, giving no light to the area beyond the occasional lightning flash outside.

"It looks like there's another door on the other side," Shane said. "Want to try going through it?"

"I have no better ideas," Ace answered.

The three of them walked through the ballroom. When they reached the center portion, a loud screech above them was the only warning they had of imminent danger. The chains holding the chandelier up gave away, causing it to come barreling down at them. Shane and Ace barely had time to duck down and cover their heads as the chandelier crashed into Epsilon. Hot wax sprayed the floor around them. Metal shards broke off and zipped through the air. The dangerous hail lasted a few seconds, and then all went quiet.

"What the… We weren't hit?" Ace looked up to see Epsilon standing still. The remaining parts of the chandelier hung limply over his head and shoulders. He had clearly taken the impact fully, but not a single part of his body was dented.

"Are you all right, Epsilon?" Shane asked as he carefully stood up.

"Of course, black belt." Epsilon took the pieces stuck to him and effortlessly tossed them away.

Shane blinked at the term Epsilon had used, but did not comment on it. "I'm glad we were with you."

"Did you get hurt?" Ace said to Shane.

"No, it seems the pieces missed me. Oh, wait…" Shane held up his right arm. The glove he wore had a long, jagged slit from the side of his mechanical hand to his elbow. "I was mistaken. One must have made contact. Thankfully, all I'll need to do is get a new glove."

"That definitely could have been a lot worse," Ace remarked. "I doubt we'll run into another chandelier, but let's keep an eye out all the same."

The door they had been walking to suddenly opened. Lance poked his head through and looked relieved to see them. "Finally! Naomi, we found someone!"

"R-really?" She timidly followed Lance to where the trio was.

"Glad to see you're okay," Ace said.

"You too," Lance answered. "We heard a really loud noise and thought we should check it out."

"I-it s-scared me," Naomi murmured.

"This seems to be a dangerous location," Shane said. "Have you run into any traps?"

Lance nodded. "We nearly got flattened by a bookcase."

"Then we had best try to find everyone else before they get injured," Shane stated. "How much of the area you came from did you explore?"

"There's one route I didn't take," Lance said. "Let's see if anyone's that way."

"All right. We can backtrack if nobody is there." Shane started toward the door Lance had come through. Everyone else stayed beside him, other than Naomi, who went after them at a short distance.

...

Even with the suddenness of the incident, Angela was not frightened by being separated from her companions. She gazed at the location she had appeared in with interest. It was a stone room with a single coffin propped against the wall. A small table with a comfortable armchair was also near her, and red drapes hung from the walls. Dennis and Jin were still with her, but nobody else had been brought to the room.

"Wow, that was weird!" Angela said cheerfully.

"You can say that again!" Jin also did not seem concerned about the situation. "So what happened? Did a ghost transport us or something?"

"That or the house is alive and hates us," Dennis said as Angela began to explore the room. "It's happened before."

"It has," Jin agreed. "I can never look at the word 'minotaur' the same way again after Shane read that book."

"What? I was referring to-"

Dennis was cut off by the coffin abruptly falling onto Angela with its lid off. She was under it for less than a second. Her hair burst through the wood to completely destroy the item. Dennis and Jin stared at the many tiny pieces scattered around her as Angela remarked, "I didn't expect that!"

"Remind me to never get on her bad side," Dennis whispered to Jin.

"Only if you make sure I don't too," Jin muttered back.

"There's nothing here! Let's go exploring!" Angela's hair whipped through the door to break it down. She skipped out, leaving Dennis and Jin to numbly follow.

The three of them emerged into a labyrinth of stone. Angela seemed puzzled by the structure while Dennis sighed. "That's fantastic. We're going to be stuck here for hours!"

A mischievous gleam entered Jin's eyes. "Not if we decide to play a game."

"A game?" Dennis followed his gaze to Angela. "Oooooh. I gotcha."

There was no pause in Angela's response. "Huh? A game? I like games! What game?"

"It's called 'break down the maze walls!'" Dennis announced.

"All you have to do is destroy as many walls as you can," Jin continued. "You have until we reach the exit to do so."

"Then we tally up how many got ruined, and the one who got rid of the most is the winner!" Dennis finished. "What'd you say?"

"That sounds fun! Let's start!" Angela's hair sprang upright.

"Hold on! I have to give the countdown first!" Jin said.

Angela waited tensely as he said, "Three… two… one… go!" Then her hair tore into the stone wall as if it was paper. Dennis and Jin watched in awe as she continued ripping her way through the labyrinth.

"Talk about sequence breaking," Dennis said as they followed.

"In this case, I really don't mind," Jin replied. "It'd be a hassle if we-"

It was Jin's turn to be cut off when they heard a sudden yell. "Holy crap!"

"Hi Max!"

"I'm not Max! It's Kurtis!"

"Sorry Max, no time to talk, I have to win this game!"

Dennis and Jin reached their voices to see that Angela had gone on with her task of breaking down the walls. Kurtis was staring after her with wide eyes.

"Pretty good way to advance, huh?" Jin said to him.

"She nearly speared me through the wall!" Kurtis protested. "One day she really is going to kill me!"

"A near fatal accident is totally worth not being stuck in a boring maze for hours," Dennis said before following Angela.

"Easy for you to say, you were safe in the back!" Kurtis went along with Jin somewhat reluctantly. "Is she going to do this for the whole mansion?"

"Quite possibly," Jin answered.

Kurtis shook his head. "Heaven help the haunted house."

Judging by the noises coming from Angela's continued assault, nothing was about to save the structure. At the very least, it did let them easily proceed.

...

The living room that Ellen arrived in had a large and elegant chair facing a worn coffee table. A dusty tea set was the only item present on it. The fireplace beyond them had wood inside of it, ready to be lit if desired, and Sera near it. Two doors were present, one on each side of the room.

Although Ellen was anxious about her partner and the rest of her friends, she recognized that speaking of her feelings would not help at all. She instead said, "Sera, do you know what happened?"

"There is a 95.6926423 percent probability that the mansion has used a device of some sort to teleport everyone within that room to various locations. Furthermore, there is an 89.491353283 percent probability that this was the intended method for accessing further sections of the mansion," Sera stated.

"If this was designed for traveling through the mansion, I get the impression it is a more mischievous area than anything," Ellen said. "It would be fine if not for the safety features being down currently. Do you have any abilities that would help you to find them quickly?"

"My abilities are focused on combat. They would not assist directly in this situation."

"Then all we can do is look." Ellen walked over to the door and kicked it open with a front hoof. It swung open with a loud creak of protest to show a dark hallway. As she went forward, her mane and tail flames extended to light more of their path. Sera walked alongside her with delicate but quick steps.

When Sera said nothing, Ellen decided to initiate a conversation. "You said your abilities are only for combat. But you use fire like I do. Couldn't you use them for out of combat purposes, such as lighting up dark hallways like this?"

"While it is possible, it is not a primary function," Sera said flatly. "Unlike your flames, mine will burn anyone they come in contact with. Because of this, it is safest to only use my fire techniques when I want to hurt someone."

"That isn't always the case. You used them to help save Shane," Ellen pointed out.

"I used them at the command of my master. Her orders are ones I will follow."

With some bemusement, Ellen asked, "What if someone was in danger and she did not order you to help?"

"If there was a way I could assist, I would do so in most circumstances. So long as Angela is with them, her chances of staying safe are higher. Therefore, it is beneficial for everyone in this group to remain alive." She did not look at Ellen once as she rattled off her reasoning.

After a moment of silence, Ellen said, "I don't mean this critically, Sera. I only ask because I am curious. Do you feel compassion for any of them?"

"I do not know what compassion feels like."

"Compassion is what fuels the fires I can use to protect them," Ellen said. "If I felt nothing for them, I could not shield them as I do."

"If that is how your techniques operate, it appears compassion is a useful emotion," Sera said.

"Perhaps you will grow to understand it as you spend more time with these people," Ellen suggested. "Then we can use our techniques together."

"That is not likely. However, should it happen, I will attempt to do so."

"I would like it if you did."

Instead of responding, Sera stopped walking. "There is a trap staircase twenty feet and seven inches away from this location. It is advised we fly over it."

Looking ahead closely, Ellen could see the staircase Sera had mentioned. It spiraled out of sight upwards. Careful examination showed that the wood in front of the carpet was a lighter color. Without Sera telling her that something was wrong, Ellen would not have thought twice about climbing up.

"It is well hidden. You have keen eyes," Ellen said. "Get on my back and I will bypass it."

Sera did as she said. Though the hallway and stairwell were large, Ellen's wings nearly touched them on both sides as she took flight. When they crossed over the oddly colored floor, needles sprang out. Their presence over the staircase caused the steps to flatten into a slide. Landing at the top caused the needles to retract and the stairs to resume their normal shape.

"I am glad you noticed that. If you see anything else, be sure to tell me," Ellen requested.

"Affirmative."

As they went down the next path, they passed a fork in the hallway. A familiar voice caused them to pause. "Ellen? Ellen, is that you?"

"Yes, Courtney. Sera and I are here."

Courtney and Petra approached them, Courtney looking relieved and Petra with her usual neutral expression. "Thank everything we finally found someone! I was starting to get worried we were going in circles."

"It is certainly a possibility in this location," Ellen said. "It is good to see neither of you are harmed."

"I nearly was," Courtney admitted. "Petra saved me."

"It was a pain, getting stuck with her," Petra remarked. "But it could have been worse. I could have been transported with her Soul Monster."

"Petra! You don't have to be so mean to Naomi all the time!" Courtney protested.

"I fail to see why speaking the truth about her is being mean," Petra stated. "If you have issues with that, save them for when we are out of here."

Noticing that Courtney still seemed annoyed, Ellen added, "Finding everyone else is our top priority. That includes Naomi."

"Yeah. She must be terrified," Courtney realized. "And you've got to be fretting over where Leigh is."

"It is in my nature to worry about her."

"Then let's keep going. Petra and I went that way, but we weren't down that path yet." Courtney pointed to the one she referred to.

"Sera and I have not been there either. Allow me to lead so we have at least some light."

Ellen stepped forward with her wings held high. With her aid, they were able to successfully proceed.

...

Leigh slowly opened her eyes to see Chasity leaning over her. She tried to say something, but Chasity cut off her weak words by grabbing her in an embrace. The action startled her, along with how tight Chasity sounded as she said, "You idiot! If you ever get hurt like that again, I'm banning you from Teknisk Wereld for good!"

"Hurt? W-what..." Leigh suddenly put her hand to her neck. Nothing remained to show her close brush with death.

"I had to use four support cards on you!" Chasity said. "Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

"I-I'm sorry…" Leigh tried to piece together the scenario she had been in, but was having a difficult time remembering. "What happened?"

"We came into this room and found you unconscious with a severe neck injury," Arcadia recounted for her. "Do you remember what caused it?"

"I… I'm not sure," she said faintly. "W-wait. There was…" She shuddered as a face came into her mind. "That boy…"

"A boy?" Chasity asked.

"He… When he came towards me, I couldn't think. It was like my mind was fogged up," Leigh said. "He said something, and…" Her hand clutched at her neck again, she murmured, "He bit me."

"Are you sure it wasn't a wild monster?" Arcadia inquired. "There are some vampires that would attack in such a fashion."

"No, I'm sure he was a human," Leigh answered. "I don't know how he did it, or why, but he was human."

"He's going to be a corpse when I get my hands on him." Chasity stood and helped to pull Leigh upright. "If he appears again, tell me immediately. I won't let him do that again."

"T-thanks." Though she appreciated the sentiment, Leigh silently wondered if Chasity would stand a better chance then she had.

"Do you feel well enough to go on?" Chasity continued. "I'm not about to rest until we've found Kurtis, Courtney, and Lance."

"If that boy's still wandering around…" Leigh raised her voice to respond, "Yes, I'm ready."

"Follow me," Arcadia said. "I will lead the way in case of potential traps."

"Traps?" Leigh asked as they went back into the passages.

"We have encountered some," Chasity said. "It's the main reason I want us to move quickly."

"Oh." Leigh remained silent the rest of the way to the next room.

When they entered, the group of three saw that it was a smaller room with a bed only large enough for one person to be comfortable. It had a dresser, nightstand, and mirror, but nothing else.

Leigh looked around. "A guest room?"

"It doesn't matter what it is. Nobody's here," Chasity said. "Let's move on."

"Hold on." Arcadia approached the mirror. "I believe I hear something."

"Over here?" Leigh joined him to look curiously.

Chasity went over impatiently. "We don't have time to-"

A click sounded as she stepped on a switch. The floor and wall suddenly spun, flipping them from their room to the neighboring one. It looked identical, except that five people were currently inside and were quite startled by the sudden appearance of three more.

"Eek!" Naomi hid behind Lance in less than a second.

"Oh! You guys!" Leigh said in surprise as they recognized Lance, Naomi, Shane, Ace, and Epsilon.

"About time we found all of you!" Ace exclaimed.

"I could have dealt with having found you last," Chasity muttered. Nobody appeared to hear her as they greeted each other.

"Did everything go well, Lord Ace?" Arcadia asked.

"As well as we could have hoped. Nobody got hurt, at least," Ace said.

"We did have some close calls," Shane remarked. Leigh noticed him glancing at his torn glove as he said that. "But yes, overall we were fortunate."

"This is half of the group," Lance said. "Hopefully we find the others soon."

"Yes." Shane opened the door of their room. They left as he said, "All we can do is keep looking."

...

Kurtis was relieved to finally reach the first floor. It meant that Angela stopped attacking walls, since Dennis and Jin had assured her that she had flawlessly won the game they were playing.

"We'll have to get you some candy as a prize," Dennis remarked.

Kurtis shuddered. "And give her a sugar rush? No way!"

"She'd break physics with how hyperactive it'd make her." Jin grinned. "I endorse trying this!"

"Do it somewhere far from me!" Kurtis quickly went forward to get away from them.

He was promptly halted by someone falling through the ceiling. He yelped as he was unceremoniously crushed.

"Sera! You found us!" Angela said happily.

"I detected that you were below. The fastest way to rendezvous was through that trap door," Sera stated as she stepped off of Kurtis' back.

"Lolis from above…" Kurtis groaned. "Today really isn't my day."

"Look on the bright side, you beat a crazy guy in a duel!" Jin said.

"If that's my bright side, my life really does suck," Kurtis muttered.

Dennis shrugged. "Could be worse. We could have found an evil tree in the labyrinth."

"Okay, I'll admit that would be worse." Kurtis slowly rose. "And I don't think anything is broken. Besides whatever pride I had left. That's in tiny pieces now."

"Is anyone else with you?" Dennis asked Sera.

"Yes. Ellen, Courtney, and Petra are above us," she answered.

"Yay! Let's go see them!" Angela's hair shot up through the hole the trap door had made. She pulled herself through swiftly.

"Hey, don't just leave us here!" Kurtis complained.

Her hair came back down to grab him around the waist. He was pulled up with a startled exclamation. Sera did not bat an eyelid as she was also lifted. Dennis and Jin flew through after them.

"I was sort of leery about agreeing to Sera's plan, but she was right," Courtney remarked. "It did work fast."

"I'm surprised to see you in one piece," Petra directed to Kurtis.

"For your information, I was perfectly fine on my own!" Kurtis said. "All that happened when I was alone was that I found a bunch of empty coffins. Then Angela almost nailed me! I was safer before they ran into me!"

"What is important is that you are unharmed," Ellen said. "We should continue to make suer everyone else is all right."

Though Kurtis still had some sour feelings about the situation, the decision was agreed on. The eight companions continued on their way.

...

Leigh was getting tired of seeing hallways and staircases. It seemed like a never-ending maze to her. Soon she had no clue as to even what floor they were on. Due to her weary state, when she first saw the bright light ahead, it took her several moments to fully comprehend what it was.

"Ellen!" Leigh waved excitedly to where she saw her Soul Monster's flames. "Ellen, over here!"

"Leigh!" Ellen went to her at once with everyone else accompanying her.

"Epsilon! Where were you when I was almost murdered?" Kurtis demanded.

"Saving lives, runt," Epsilon responded shortly. "Your apparently was not in much danger if you are still here."

"Can you say anything without putting me down?" Kurtis grumbled.

Naomi had flung herself onto Courtney. "I-I'm s-so glad to s-see you…"

"Me too. I was afraid you'd have a heart attack on your own," Courtney said.

"L-Lance helped me."

"I see." Courtney nodded to Lance. "Thanks for doing that."

"Any time." He grabbed Dennis out of the air. "I'm sort of surprised you didn't try to burn down the entire place."

"Nah, we had a much better way to get around!" Dennis said with a toothy grin.

"It was awesome! Angela wrecked the entire basement!" Jin declared. "You should have seen it, Shane!"

Shane smiled in amusement. "I'm glad you at least had fun."

Jin looked more closely at him. "Hey, were you hurt?"

"No, Epsilon prevented Ace and me from being hit. Thanks for the concern though."

With an admiring glance at Epsilon, Jin said, "I knew we could count on a giant robot!"

"Of course," Epsilon answered tonelessly.

Petra approached Chasity. "At least you kept your head."

"I almost didn't. Leigh was close to death when we found her," Chasity said.

"What?" Ellen said in alarm.

"I'm okay now, thanks to Chasity," Leigh assured her.

"She has remarkable maternal instincts," Arcadia said.

"Just imagine if she had her own children," Kurtis said. "Good thing nobody wants to stick around her long enough to get laid."

He had to promptly run as Chasity chased him while shouting, "You little jerk! I can't believe I was ever worried about you!"

Ace watched the scene while blinking. "Yikes. Now I really don't want to get on her bad side."

"Maybe we should get out of here before she kills him," Lance suggested.

"As much as I'd like to continue watching this, it isn't nearly as amusing without popcorn," Dennis agreed.

"Oh! I can get us out! Watch!" Angela's hair pierced through a nearby wall. It revealed the old porch that was by the entrance.

"We were that close all along? I hate this place so much," Courtney muttered.

With Kurtis still attempting to escape Chasity's wrath, they went onto the porch to look around. The rain storm had become a slower drizzle with only the occasional lightning bolt.

"Let's get out of here!" Jin declared. "Where to next?"

"Actually…" Leigh hesitated before saying, "If it's all right… I really don't feel like going anywhere else today."

Chasity stopped long enough to say, "I agree. We can continue tomorrow, but nothing else today."

"Especially after we did all of that for nothing," Courtney said. "Not a single Enslaved was there!"

"Shall we meet at the same place and same time tomorrow?" Shane asked.

"Yes, we will," Chasity said. "See you then."

All of them proceeded to use their Duel Disks to log out. Angela was the exception. She grabbed Leigh's leg to go along with her.

...

A short distance away, two people watched as the group vanished. The boy who stared silently at them had traces of blood around his mouth that the rain had not yet cleared away. The girl who stood by him had the old bloodstains still decorating her skin, while the water did nothing to wash them off.

"Look at that! A few small accidents and they go running away! These are the people she's so worried about? I could have outright killed that boy if I had wanted!"

Her comrade did not respond. She frowned at him. "Kouki? What're you doing?" When he still said nothing, she reached over to his arm. Her hand went partially through it, and she smirked. "That girl looks familiar to you, huh? You didn't quite kill her. That's a surprise; you're usually so good at making sure the job's done. What's the matter? She look too much like your precious older-"

She suddenly stumbled back, her hand coming out of his arm. He spoke icily as she gripped her head. "Enough, Macabre."

"You really aren't much fun sometimes." She turned and began to walk away. "Sit and be boring all you want, but she expects you back soon."

Kouki did not answer her, nor did he react to the suit of armor that followed her away. He was too preoccupied by his thoughts.

To be continued…


End file.
